By Aria Dody, ’21
Does 2+2 really equal 4? Why is the sky blue? Is this sentence really a run-on?
As kids, having immense curiosity was our way of figuring out the world. We would ask these questions with the hope of making sense of everything happening around us. Some of these questions, as we have gotten older, we can now answer with certainty. Like, yes, 2+2 really does equal four because if you have two apples and then you get two more apples, and put them together, you have four apples. Unlike 2+2, some questions that we ask will not always have a solid answer, and some questions we will need to figure out the answers for ourselves.
When we are in school, we learn that asking questions in class can help us to understand the information that we are learning. But this doesn’t just apply to the classroom, it also applies to our life around us. Some of the hardest questions asked in life aren’t found in class, but outside of it. We have information at our fingertips and an endless number of resources to understand it, so why not use it? When we find the truth in the questions that we ask about the world today, that is when we can come to raise awareness for the things important to us and to fight for justice.
Someone once asked me, “How do you raise awareness when the world seems to not want to listen?” I did not say it then but looking back I have realized the answer is
simple, you keep going. You continue to pursue the truth for yourself, to educate those who want to listen, and to learn more to show others why they should listen. Even just one mind changed to think differently can start a chain reaction to fill the world with more goodness rather than hate. In the gospel today it said, “Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.” So even when the world is constantly saying no, continue. Continue to fight for what is right, acting the way God made you to live.
As the canned food drive starts, remember the power each of us has to make a difference in the community. As you pass someone in the store with a basket full of cans, they may ask you, “What are you doing with so many cans?” You can be the person to answer the question they have been longing for any answer to, by saying “My school is having a donation to Second Harvest Food Bank.” And they might just be inspired by you and donate cans themselves. It may not be a group of people, but you just made one more person aware of the need others have to put food on the table. Making a difference starts with one person. It starts with someone wondering and asking the question, “Why is the world the way it is?” And from there, the journey to change may be hard, but it will always be worth it in the end. So, listen, ask questions, seek the truth, and show Christ’s love to others.
PHOTO GALLERY