The name of my blog is Thailand and Other Lost Causes, that probably seems like a strange name to give this blog. Why would you call something you're passionate about, something you want to spend the rest of your life doing, something you want others to support you in a lost cause? It makes no sense...it seems counter productive, it's not I promise.
The idea for the name came from this blog post that I wrote almost three years ago while I was an undergrad intern at Honor Academy of The Ozarks. That post was inspired by one of my favorite quotes of all time,
"It's very often that the lost causes are the only causes worth fighting for." - Jimmy Stewart
These words are spoken in the fantastic movie Mr.Smith Goes To Washington by a man by the name of Mr.Smith (Jimmy Stewart) who is in Washington D.C. fighting what seems like a losing battle for something he believes in, something he knows is right. He's fighting for the children of America. He's fighting to help and protect them and he keeps fighting when the odds are stacked against him and no one is on his side. Even when the evil henchmen come after him he keeps fighting because the people he's fighting for are more important to him than his reputation, position, and even his life. Deep down he knows that everything is against and he probably can't help every single child in the United States. Some of them will still slip through the cracks, he is in fact by definition fighting for a lost cause, but it doesn't matter because he knows it's worth fighting for and even if only one child is helped then it's worth it.
I feel the same is true about me and what I want to do. I know that it's going to be really, really hard and even dangerous. The odds will always be against us, and we will not save every person in Thailand, or the US, or across the world. We won't even save every person we meet, heck we won't even be able to save all of the people we get out of trafficking, some of them will go back. Sounds like a worthy endeavor doesn't it? I bet you're not jumping up and down to pack your bags and embark on a journey that sounds like it will ultimately end in failure. It is in all sense of the phrase a lost cause. But, it's one worth fighting for. It's a lost cause that I believe in. A lost cause that I'm called to. It's a cause that I know is worth it. It's something I would give my life for. It's worth it because we can't save them all but we can save some. We can make a difference and we can help someone. It's worth it because there's a girl that I personally know that after years got out and she started over and she's not in bondage anymore. It's worth it because places like this exist and there are children and women there receiving care and freedom. It's worth is because in North Carolina I was able to witness firsthand what happens when people who are so close to give up keep going. It's worth it because I may not be able to set free every person in slavery but every person in slavery deserves a chance and needs someone willing to fight for them and face insurmountable odds in order to let them know that they're loved and are worth more than the money they're bought and sold for.
So yes, calling it a lost cause makes no sense and yet all the sense in the world. It may be a "lost cause" but it is one I will fight for as long as I live because it's worth fighting for. I ask that you join me in this fight however you can. I need you, they need you.
The idea for the name came from this blog post that I wrote almost three years ago while I was an undergrad intern at Honor Academy of The Ozarks. That post was inspired by one of my favorite quotes of all time,
"It's very often that the lost causes are the only causes worth fighting for." - Jimmy Stewart
These words are spoken in the fantastic movie Mr.Smith Goes To Washington by a man by the name of Mr.Smith (Jimmy Stewart) who is in Washington D.C. fighting what seems like a losing battle for something he believes in, something he knows is right. He's fighting for the children of America. He's fighting to help and protect them and he keeps fighting when the odds are stacked against him and no one is on his side. Even when the evil henchmen come after him he keeps fighting because the people he's fighting for are more important to him than his reputation, position, and even his life. Deep down he knows that everything is against and he probably can't help every single child in the United States. Some of them will still slip through the cracks, he is in fact by definition fighting for a lost cause, but it doesn't matter because he knows it's worth fighting for and even if only one child is helped then it's worth it.
I feel the same is true about me and what I want to do. I know that it's going to be really, really hard and even dangerous. The odds will always be against us, and we will not save every person in Thailand, or the US, or across the world. We won't even save every person we meet, heck we won't even be able to save all of the people we get out of trafficking, some of them will go back. Sounds like a worthy endeavor doesn't it? I bet you're not jumping up and down to pack your bags and embark on a journey that sounds like it will ultimately end in failure. It is in all sense of the phrase a lost cause. But, it's one worth fighting for. It's a lost cause that I believe in. A lost cause that I'm called to. It's a cause that I know is worth it. It's something I would give my life for. It's worth it because we can't save them all but we can save some. We can make a difference and we can help someone. It's worth it because there's a girl that I personally know that after years got out and she started over and she's not in bondage anymore. It's worth it because places like this exist and there are children and women there receiving care and freedom. It's worth is because in North Carolina I was able to witness firsthand what happens when people who are so close to give up keep going. It's worth it because I may not be able to set free every person in slavery but every person in slavery deserves a chance and needs someone willing to fight for them and face insurmountable odds in order to let them know that they're loved and are worth more than the money they're bought and sold for.
So yes, calling it a lost cause makes no sense and yet all the sense in the world. It may be a "lost cause" but it is one I will fight for as long as I live because it's worth fighting for. I ask that you join me in this fight however you can. I need you, they need you.
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