Thursday, October 05, 2006

Heart

Do you remember Jump Rope for Heart? I remember when I was young we used to do it every year and every year I loved it. The t-shirt, the super cool knee-high athletic socks (which eventually were used to launch stinkbombs into the boys change room - now why couldn't I enter that in the science fair?) and those beaded-skipping ropes like muticoloured knuckle-bones nipping at your legs every time you stopped to take a breather.

Today we went to a charter school (just like a private school except it's publicly funded) for a Jump program launch. The school focuses on athletics, academics and arts...sort of like what regular schools used to focus on. The Jump program is celebrating its (wait for it...this is going to make you feel old...) 25th anniversary this year. The kids did a skipping demo and presented the Heart and Stroke Foundation with a cheque for $40,000. Wow.

The kids were really happy and excited about raising so much money. They were proud of themselves and their teacher and weren't the least bit afraid of talking to the reporters and camera men who covered the event.

Which made me wonder, at what point exactly does everything change? At what point do people get annoyed of not-for-profits asking for money? When do we become so self-aware that we would rather stay quiet than risk saying the wrong thing? When does it stop being "cool" to care? At what point in our lives did we stop skipping?

1 comment:

Alli said...

I used to love the jump for the heart event when it came around. I was alway had a high score, with my red and white skipping rope and t shirt. The skip-a-thon was my favorite part. They've never even heard of anything like that here. My guess? We've become so self absorbed that our hearts have become hardened, and things like donating to charities are considered a pain.

You know how at certain times of the year, stores will ask if you want to donate a dollar to x charity? It's never an issue. I'll gladly give a dollar. But I have seen and heard countless people sigh as if the cashiers were asking for a kidney. People have stopped believing in change, and just follow the status quo.

So so sad.