Sometimes I wonder if we have become too overly sensitive and PC about life in general?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=11567212&ref=NZH_FBpage
This young Kiwi dancer in the New Zealand Herald article link above has made the big time and good on her for it, in my view.
Parris Goebel is now backup dancer and leading choreographer for the likes of Justin Beiber and Jennifer Lopez.
Her decision to use another international cultural dance style seems to have brought some controversy.
I'm sure Parris is aware of cultural sensitivity and its importance to the various communities from which it belongs.
Let's applaud and encourage her progress on the international stage and screen because it was probably not easy to have made it as she has.
Well done Parris and Beating the Odds wishes you well with your own incredible talent and on your continued journey in supporting these incredibly talented singers.
What do you think about dancers and singers using cultural dances and songs from other cultures?
Tuesday 29 December 2015
Sunday 6 December 2015
Petition for raising the age for children to leave foster care in New Zealand
The letter below encouraging people to participate in a petition is on the Fostercare Share ActionStation site and I thought it was an important enough issue to publish on the BTO blog:
LETTER STARTS:
LETTER STARTS:
"Did you know that in New Zealand young people are exited from foster care on their 17th birthday?
While most 17 year olds are worrying about things like exams, these young people are worrying about where they’ll live and how to support themselves.
With no support networks and no place to call home, many young people struggle to cope.
Leaving state care at 17 means teenagers can end up on to the streets for years.
It doesn’t have to be this way. There’s a simple change we can make – raising the age of leaving foster care from 17 to 21.
I just signed a petition calling for exactly that, will you join me?
Our government is currently reviewing Child Youth and Family’s role. This is the perfect opportunity that Kiwis from all walks of life to show that we don’t stop caring when our young people in state care turn 17.
By signing this petition, we can help ensure young people won’t be left out in the cold when they turn 17."
Please add your name now: www.actionstation.org.nz/wedontstopcaring
LETTER ENDS
BTO says:
The vulnerability of youngsters who are dependent on the state and the need for them to continue to have the safety nets of kind people who are willing to take them in, is important in today's society.
It is not acceptable to have a situation where they have nowhere to go and slip through the cracks of legislation because of their age, in this great country of ours.
I would hope that like me, you would get behind this petition for our young displaced people and help ensure they have loving, caring, warm homes to go to until they can fend for themselves.
Beating the Odds
BTO
Saturday 5 December 2015
A place to take a quiet moment
When Ren Haskell's friend told her about a colleague who had taken her own life during work hours the tragedy became a catalyst to the women creating a quiet space in the middle of a busy city for people to reflect and relax.
During a work break the colleague stepped out for a short time but when she failed to return, staff members later learned what had happened.
"My friend was of course devastated about what had happened so we looked for a way to help people when the tough things happen to them and around them," Ren says.
Ren had been working for the Hari Krishna movement at its café in Water Street, Whangarei in Northland, New Zealand.
The HK movement ran a programme to help the homeless and children from low decile schools by providing meals - particularly breakfasts based around the well-known motto: 'feed the body and feed the mind'.
"I went to Buddi - the movement's leader and apparently they had considerable difficulty growing vegetables in the small garden next to the movement's café. So he told me the land was ours to do with it what we wanted and said they entrusted us with it," she says.
So the healing garden was created in the former vegetable patch and has been going for a year now.
Ren says she realises people can 'chill out' or take time to think anywhere, such as the beach but it takes the cost of fuel to get there and it's not the same as a purpose-created space where it's needed.
"The idea of a healing garden being in such a central place is that people may be stressed by work or by life's events, they may have just received that dreaded phone call with bad news, or even hearing a certain song that brings back memories out of the blue. They can take time out at a place that is close to where they are at that moment," she says.
The garden is surrounded by a wall where people can sit and enjoy it.
She says although the small 4 metre by 10m space is in a busy area of the city, the way it is set out gives people that feeling of solace and fresh air, with something beautiful to look at.
Ren is starting to organise monthly gatherings at the garden, where people can bring something to exchange with others; such as a plant, or ornament and they can share their experiences if they want to.
"When I've been working in the garden, often people will come and talk to me about what they've been through, so that's how I know about many traumatic things that have happened to and around people," Ren says.
Hearing these stories has shown the garden is therapeutic as well as a place to enjoy, she says.
Do you know of any ideas that have been created in your community to beat the stresses of life?
Tell us about them as they may help others facing difficulties.
Beating the Odds
BTO.
During a work break the colleague stepped out for a short time but when she failed to return, staff members later learned what had happened.
"My friend was of course devastated about what had happened so we looked for a way to help people when the tough things happen to them and around them," Ren says.
Ren had been working for the Hari Krishna movement at its café in Water Street, Whangarei in Northland, New Zealand.
The HK movement ran a programme to help the homeless and children from low decile schools by providing meals - particularly breakfasts based around the well-known motto: 'feed the body and feed the mind'.
"I went to Buddi - the movement's leader and apparently they had considerable difficulty growing vegetables in the small garden next to the movement's café. So he told me the land was ours to do with it what we wanted and said they entrusted us with it," she says.
So the healing garden was created in the former vegetable patch and has been going for a year now.
Community at heart: Ren Haskell and friends have created a sanctuary where people can relax and reflect when the difficult times come.
Ren says she realises people can 'chill out' or take time to think anywhere, such as the beach but it takes the cost of fuel to get there and it's not the same as a purpose-created space where it's needed.
"The idea of a healing garden being in such a central place is that people may be stressed by work or by life's events, they may have just received that dreaded phone call with bad news, or even hearing a certain song that brings back memories out of the blue. They can take time out at a place that is close to where they are at that moment," she says.
The garden is surrounded by a wall where people can sit and enjoy it.
She says although the small 4 metre by 10m space is in a busy area of the city, the way it is set out gives people that feeling of solace and fresh air, with something beautiful to look at.
Ren is starting to organise monthly gatherings at the garden, where people can bring something to exchange with others; such as a plant, or ornament and they can share their experiences if they want to.
"When I've been working in the garden, often people will come and talk to me about what they've been through, so that's how I know about many traumatic things that have happened to and around people," Ren says.
Hearing these stories has shown the garden is therapeutic as well as a place to enjoy, she says.
Do you know of any ideas that have been created in your community to beat the stresses of life?
Tell us about them as they may help others facing difficulties.
Beating the Odds
BTO.
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