3 posts tagged “children”

I know, cute, huh? My friend Bevan’s kids, Andrew and Jessica, at the barbecue yesterday, raiding Bevan’s cousin Sonia’s costumes (no, Chinese people do not regularly walk around like this).
   Remember when you went to family functions and there were strange “uncles” and “aunts” who could not possibly be related to you, making weird comments at you while you ran around and just wanted to play?
   Oh, man, I have turned into one of those weird-ass uncles.
   But the kids got used to me and actually understand Cantonese, though they tend to reply in English. They are both extremely bright for their ages (two and four).
   I really noticed how the tables turned yesterday and seeing Bevan’s kids made me feel a bit old. Bevan’s older brother, Aaron, and I were in the same year at primary (elementary) school. And Aaron and I did reminisce about school days and wondered what happened to that dude Karl Urban who used to be in our class. Wonder if he ever became famous or something … Remember how he used to like acting?

Not a lot of people in New Zealand will publicly say this, even if they think it: thank you to our troops.
   The fear from both the Government and the Opposition is that this simple expression of gratitude will upset the anti-Americans in the country and make them sound like Bushites. We have some chicken-s*** politicians.
   What an intelligent person will work out is that regardless of one’s political stripes, our men and women in Afghanistan are fighting terrorism admirably and have even been recognized by the US Government for their valour. There are those in Iraq helping with the rebuilding efforts.
   I would even go so far as to express my thanks to the entire Coalition of the Willing, wherever the troops are based.
   Again, this should not be a political matter. Even Democratic politicians have expressed this wish. These people are willing to pay the ultimate price for a cause they believe in.
   I remember the civilians who have lost their homes, family members and their own lives in conflicts globally. I remember those whose family structures have been demolished by tyrants. I hope you find peace in 2008 as the human spirit cannot be extinguished unless we let it.
   It may be naïve to say that I wish for world peace, but on a deep level I do.
   Until we are ready to achieve that, we should be able to recognize good from evil and just what values contribute to a strong, prosperous and safe society where we can say to our children, ‘Be happy. Be yourself.’
   In many western nations I wonder if we can make the distinction between right and wrong.
   When we are clear about it, we can defend what’s right. And sometimes, men of peace must become men of war in order to stamp out villainy.
   This need not just be with guns. In the corporate world, in our everyday lives, we sometimes must “wage war” on impropriety and corruption. When we vote for our governments, we are not voting for who gives us the biggest bribe, but who will either restore, defend or build our values, to create the society that we say we want our children to grow up in.
   And to begin, I give thanks to all those who defend those values—whether they are values based in our faith or in our philosophy.

I’ve been helping out Lianne at Organic Baby: I thought the Mums here on Vox, especially those in New Zealand, may like to know more about organic products for kids. Lianne has her blog here, and her site here.