The world scares me; it's a big, bad place and, if we spend our time watching the news, we're led to believe it's full of big, bad people.
Studying Journalism, I spend a lot of time studying news and I'm beginning to think there's more bad people in the world than good. Everyday you hear about a murder, or a burglary at the very least, and it makes you wonder what and who we're living with.
I'm thinking about this because of something I heard in the news this week. It's sickened me to the core and I can't find the words to describe it.
Donna's Dream House is a holiday home for terminally ill children and their families; a haven where children can forget about their illness and enjoy some of their last hours in a care-free environment. This is a place where happiness comes above everything and the focus is on 'living, not dying'.
The charity began with a girl called Donna and she had three wishes. They were found in a box by her bedside when she passed away at age 20 after having fought cancer for 4 years. Throughout the 4 year fight, she saw how children were suffering and decided that she wanted to help terminally ill children to live their last days a little more happier. So, in order to fulfill their late child's fairy-tale dream, Donna's parents set up the home and named it 'Donna's Dream House'.
This week, the house had to be closed down. And for a few families, this means Christmas has been cancelled.
Burglars have broken in to the house and set fire to pictures of Donna, causing over £80,000 of damage. Donna's father, Len Curtis, said it's 'ripped the heart out of the charity'. I don't understand how anybody could be so heartless to do such a thing. It's obvious to anybody what the house stands for, from both the inside and the out. The signing on the front and the illuminations in the garden stand for excitement and joy, like the atmosphere which sits inside the house. But all that's been ruined.
Laptops, TVs and cameras have been stolen but it's not about the materialistic items; it's about the house in terms of the charity, the hard work of those involved and its emotional state, not the physical solid state as it stood. The pictures and memories which sat inside the house were priceless and non-renewable. The only thing Len and Barbara have left of Donna was the pictures and her dream house and somebody, with one heartless blow, has been sick enough to destroy that.
Reading the articles about this brought tears to my eyes. I still feel sick. I hope Len and Barbara find a way to get through this and bring Donna's Dream House back up to where it was. This is the type of place we need to help in its fight, we spend far too much time worrying about materialistic things, this is about people's lives and their happiness. Children.
Some things are irreplaceable, like the photos of Donna, but with a little help, we can help Len and Barbara help other people.
Helping doesn't just mean money, it's using your initiative and emotion to make somebody else's life or job a bit easier. Helping is whatever you have to offer.
well said!!!!!
ReplyDelete