Amihan – The Marist Brothers Newsletter
Seeing the World Through The Eyes of the Children
Br. Ted’s Editorial for Amihan December 2011 Issue
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This phrase, which first caught me as a theme during the postulants’ proclamation on November 19, was chosen by FMSI as the Advent Prayer/Reflection for the Brothers throughout the world. The emphasis was on the article 2 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child ensuring “that the child is protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment…”. As Brothers and educators, we are challenged “to become sensitive to this issue in our daily and regular contact with children.” In the daily reflections are featured children up to their teens, from 9 countries representing third to first world countries, whose stories “highlight the myriad ways in which discrimination displays itself” (Br. Jim Jolley).
As we enter the lives of these children from Argentina to Kenya, from Kiribati to the USA, we can’t help but see the world of discrimination through their very simple eyes. All they need is acceptance for what they are and providing the environment for growth and compassion. One of the songs in the musical Les Miserables, expressed this so aptly, “When I look at you, I see the face of God”. Certainly, children are the most vulnerable to crime and punishment; but they are also the most sensitive to our kindness and proper guidance, given that we act justly towards them.
Happy Feet, Two, one of the animated pre-Christmas movies shown lately featured a young penguin named Erik who wanted to fly but was dissuaded by his father Mumble that “penguins just do not fly”. So the little penguin left his family in search of the bird who looks like a penguin. Upon seeing Erik on his lone journey to the unknown, Mumble left the large flock of penguins in search of his son. When the father found his son, Mumble merely accompanied him in the journey and at the same time injected some words of wisdom for Erik to learn about life. As they journeyed together, Little Erik saw how his father risked his life to free a sea elephant from a solid wall of ice surrounding him and how his father tried to save the large group of penguins that were trapped when the ice shell collapsed. Their effort was to no avail; so they went to the sea elephants to seek for help, but they were refused. The most poignant scene was when the father walked away after refusal, and little Erik, upon seeing the pain in his father’s face, turned to the sea elephant. Through a very touching song, he defended his father, recalling how he tried to save the lives of many including the large mammal’s,… putting his life at stake… He ended his song with,“HE is MY FATHER, MY HERO”. Little Erik touched the heart of the whole crowd of sea elephants that later provided the path to recovery of the endangered penguin species. Erik’s meaningful journey to learn that he doesn’t have to fly to save others and be a hero is a growthful journey that can only be provided by an adult, accompanying with a genuine compassion and paternal guidance towards what the child should become.
This Christmas allows us to see life as it is, and like Erik, learn to accept the reality of becoming and the pain that growth entails. Just like the baby Jesus, going through the process of birth, growth and maturity to become human. Children can challenge us in their simplicity to see our future a better place and to respond to their call for compassion and just treatment of man and nature. We are thus invited to see our world through the eyes of these children. For that exactly is what Christ challenged us to be, “Unless you become like little children, you cannot enter heaven” (Mat 18:3-4). “Seeing the World Through the Eyes of the Children”