Ryan's birthday wish

www.planusa.org

My 32nd birthday is on June 15th. June 16th is the International Day of the African Child.

Both of these days come and go every year with little to-do, little fanfare.

Just as the anniversary of my birth brings with it an excuse for celebration sprinkled with introspection, so should the day after.

The Int'l Day of the African Child might seem like one of many designated “special” days that show up only in almanacs and obscure blogs.

Well, it is one of those days.

However, unlike “Wrong Trousers Day” (June 29, 2007) or “World Turtle Day” (May 26, 2007), this day is set aside to call attention to one of the catastrophes of our time, that is the plight of kids living amongst the most challenging circumstances the modern world has to offer.

This blog, though occasionally flippant, is meant to help illustrate this.

The day after my birthday is an opportunity to celebrate the progress made toward health, education, equality and protection for Africa’s children and also reflect on our failures and, most importantly, the future.

I will be posting more about this as Saturday approaches, but I wanted to take this opportunity to call your attention to these two upcoming days and, for those interested, share my birthday wish.

Here it is: Please make a donation to Young Heroes.

Your money (all of it) will go directly to a family caring for an orphan here in Swaziland.

See the Young Heroes website for more information.