Why Education (and educating) is Important to Me...

I think education became important to me when I first experienced and overseas schooling environment (overseas in the third world). It was awful. I was in Guatemala and I realized that the children there had to pay a lot of money for thewir education (even if it was a public one) and they were not being taught as much as they could be (whether it was a private or public education). It saddened me. It made me realize how powerful an education is. Most third world countries lack a proper educational system. Coincidence?

I also realized how important an education was when the kids I nany for would try to eat their food with their hands that the dog had just licked! That is completely unsanitary and disgusting, but they didn't see anything wrong with it. Why? Because they had not received that education yet. No one had told them that doing that could make them extremely sick. Why should it be any different for a grown person in Guatemala or the Philippines? If no one has ever told them what is good hygiene and what is poor hygiene, how can they be expected to know?

Since that revelation, I realized that I could not blame anyone, I could only act. So that is what I will do, I will act upon my convictions. I will become an educator and teach people about their health and their beliefs and their world. They have a right to know.