hmmm…..
So, wrap your head around this. A homeless teenager became a semifinalist in the Intel Science Talent Search. Her parents were severely injured in an accident; they couldn’t keep up their rent payments and so the family was evicted on New Year’s Eve. They lived in a shelter on Long Island, NY while looking for jobs and trying to recover.
The young girl did research on mussels and crabs and discovered that when they were mingled together, the mussels formed harder and thicker shells because of a chemical emitted by the crabs. This made the mussels better able to withstand danger. Doing research in labs kept the student occupied; she spent hours and hours in school every day.
Not everyone who lives in a shelter is a lazy drifter. In fact far from it; resilience and patience are necessary for the many families stuck in shelters because of loss of income. Jobs are not that easy to come by – this young girl looked unsuccessfully for part time work that would be compatible with her school schedule. You can’t accuse this young scientist of being lazy; she worked too hard for her science award.
So there …. another hard luck story in a world inflicted with an economic crisis that won’t go away. Is it time for another sermon preached on the need for public services for those down and out in our country? Probably not. Surely that story has been told over and over again.
So I guess I’m wondering, when will the story be heard?
hmmm…..
Yes this story has been told over and over...but honestly it is never too often to hear it again! We become jaded by those who abuse the system and forget that there are really those who NEED the system. THANKS, nancy. smiles, clay
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