It's been a few days since people across the country remained silent for a day to raise awareness for the millions that live without rights and without a voice. The challenging day was full of reflection and the following is a realization I made which I'm sure participants everywhere shared.
I think everyone who participated in Vow of Silence learned a very important lesson. Not being able to communicate verbally means not only no voice and the added strain and difficulty of communicating, it means not having an opinion, no being able to ask for help, and not being able to tell people how you feel and what you want. It means you can't get what you need and depending on other people to help you attain certain things. It means dependence--on paper, on your writing implement and on the people around you to be understanding.
On November 20th, I realized that the Vow of Silence is not just about challenging yourself to remain quiet for 24 hours. It's also about experiencing the frustration and the hopelessness that comes with understanding that you can't call out for help or express your feelings. It makes you realize that every child in the world who doesn't have the rights they deserve needs our help to get those rights. They can't do it on their own.
Silence sucks.
No comments:
Post a Comment