A few minutes of your
time can bring about change to last a lifetime
The
Unlimited Titans cricket team recently visited Bramley Child & Youth Care
Centre in Groenkloof to hand over a cheque for money they have raised with
their annual charity event. This was
awesome and the money is appreciated.
But, the time the players spent with the children, playing cricket and
sharing ice creams, was an almost priceless contribution by the men in blue.
Every person, but especially
children, needs a hero. What is a
hero? According to Wikipedia it is “a person, typically a man, who is admired for
their courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities”.
Role
models in children’s lives greatly affect their futures, putting a large amount
of pressure on those role models to set a good example. The Titans spending
time with the children on a sunny Monday afternoon caused excitement and left a
lingering impression on the children. To
laugh and play with national sporting heroes in the garden of the Bramley CYCC was
a very positive experience. Without even noticing it, these players contributed
to the well-being of the children by providing attention, fun and lots of
laughter.
The
children at Bramley CYCC live in combined family structures where about 15
children live in one house. Providing individual attention can become a
challenge and also the relationship between the care givers and children can’t
be the same as a parent child relationship in a biological family. In the
standard household the parents have specific roles and the father would
normally take the position as role model.
However,
when a child lacks a positive role model for his future, that child will seek a
“fatherly” figure to mentor him, whether they have the ability to mentor or
not. Children often compare their idea of a father or fatherly figures to
heroes, most notably Superman. They think of them as being invincible and rock
solid in life.
The
children at the CYCC clearly understands that no-one is perfect. Still they be
given high goals in life to shoot for, like trying to be Superman, so that they
land high in the moral scale of Humanity. If children don’t get high moral
standards right from the beginning, it is very hard for them to attain a high
level of morality later in life.
Heroes
direct children in the right direction, help the people around them, and leave
lasting impressions on the past, present, and future. Heroes stood up for what
is right when others sat down, did ten times more than what was asked of them,
questioned authority when authority was wrong, and fought for the rights of all
people. The world of today has been shaped by the heroes of the past, as the
future will be shaped be the heroes of today.
Heroes
will be forever needed and respected in society, and one of the best quotes
summarizing heroes is by C.S. Lewis, who once said, “each hero is human, a
rainbow of thoughts and emotions; subject to quirks, failures, triumphs and,
yes, even flaws.” Each person should look up to these flawed heroic “rainbows,”
and thank them for everything heroes have done in their lives, and how they’ve
made the world a better place.
At
Bramley CYCC a lot of work is done to rebuild the image children have of the
world around them and we are constantly embarking on programmes to build their
self-esteem and the way they perceive the world. Interaction with positive people who are
achievers and who are comfortable in their space however has far more value
than any therapy session – the children basked in the attention from all the
players.
We
value true heroes like the Unlimited Titans and we thank them for the work they
do for charity. They are all role models
and showed patience, love and support to all the children. They all interacted
and played with the children and made every child feel special! Like Zeus said in Hercules: “A true hero isn’t measured by the size of
his strength, but by the strength of his heart”.
