A Helping Hand

Sometimes my passionate activist spirit gets me in over my head, and someone has to step in and help. Usually my long-suffering husband. Poor guy has painted signs, corralled kids, frozen in place, marched, chanted, advocated, and debated more than he imagined would ever be asked of him. It’s the life of an activist’s partner and he fulfills his part (and forges paths of his own) admirably. My kids have also been important allies in my quests to make things better by making issues more prominent. They have attended more marches and rallies than most college students, worn sandwich boards with messages on them, carried banners, passed out flyers, dressed as fairy tale characters, and generally been an important part of the change I, and then they, want to see in the world. Together we have taken back the night, taken on discrimination, and taken off the blinders of misinformation. Ours is not a mellow or even calm family, but I think we’ll take “passionate” and maybe even “obsessed” over “complacent” and “silent.” Certainly there are times when tuning out the causes would be easier, but I think the mark of true advocacy is persevering when it gets hard not just when it is fun and easy. And I think my crew is mostly on board with that. In Leslie Valdes’ “Meet Diego” from Dora’s Storytime Collection, Dora’s solo attempts to save a little critter are not working--until cousin Diego swings in (literally) to help. Gracias, Diego! Thank you, family!

http://www.amazon.com/Doras-Storytime-Collection-Dora-Explorer/dp/0689866232

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1656354/