Tuesday, September 14, 2010

of one versus a hundred

"If you can't feed a hundred people, then just feed one."
- Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Mother Teresa was born in 26 August 1910 in what was known as the Ottoman Empire (now the capital of the Republic of Macedonia). From an early age she knew that she wanted to be a missionary, and at the age of 18 she joined a convent. It was through convent work that she was brought to Calcutta, where she became increasingly disturbed by the state of poverty around her. When she was 36, Mother Teresa left the convent and entered the slums to help the poor and needy, where she would spend 45 years of her life. Mother Teresa started the Missionaries of Charity in 1950, which now operates hundreds of missions around the world, and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.

It was actually pretty interesting how I came upon this quote. A friend had suggested that I join a certain group in school which is working towards lifting the prejudice on rape victims in society. I came for my first meeting with the group, was not entirely convinced by the cause, unsure if I should direct my time to something more worthwhile. Then I looked out the window and literally saw the words of the quote staring at me -- the school had decided to decorate this particular wall of this particular block with the words of Mother Teresa. It was the quote that largely persuaded me to stay on with the group.

(Almost 3 months later I am still unsure if this little group will ever come to anything, or if I will be able to help even one person, but I guess it's best to stay optimistic.)

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