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Senator Cory Booker: Putting Our Children First

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A Note From The Editors: Members of our founding family had the privilege of hearing Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey speak recently at a school function. The leader shared words of wisdom and encouragement that ring very true to the message of InspireConversation.com. Senator Booker also took the time to speak with some of our kids, and to lend his support to our children’s charity initiative, Triplets4aCause.com. Mr. Booker shares a powerful message about putting our children first, and the importance of practicing, as well as preaching, love and tolerance.

Adapted From the Words of Senator Cory Booker, on May 3, 2015

There is power in putting our children first, a great power. One that not only enables the growth of those children themselves, but of our community as a whole. Throughout history, any people who have been successful have been the ones that put their children first.

The Maasai are one of Africa’s greatest tribes, a fabled and powerful people who at one time were considered to possess the most feared and intelligent warriors on the entire continent. No one would cross the mighty Masai on the battlefield. Yet, the traditional greeting among Maasai people is “kasserian ingera,” roughly translated it means, “and how are the children?”

From storied heroes of the past, to the modern day leaders of communities such as ours, great people throughout history have recognized that the future of our society is through our children.

It is for this reason that a big part of our education should be about ideals and values. Facts are important, and education needs to have a grounding in the more traditional areas of math, science, language and history. However we must also be cognizant of the fact that no education is truly complete without a grounding in ethics and morality. Values should be at the core of our teachings, our conversations, and even our hiring process when we decide who we should work with. Our shared morality should be woven into the fabric of our community, a constant presence to guide our actions and enable us to be our best selves.

One need only look at the news lately to see that these are perilous times. While it may seem at times that we are slipping back, that we are losing touch with one another, this is only true if we let it be. When we hold dear the notion that we need to be good and kind to all others around us, when we instill these notions in our children and teach them to take up the mantle of peace, there is hope.

This will not happen if we stand idly by and simply watch the world pass by on the news. But just how do we best teach this to our children?

We need to show our children, our teenagers, the next generation – to go out of their way to extend kindness to others. We must show them by our actions in order to guide theirs, to go above mere tolerance and to embrace others, no matter differences in religion, culture, race, background, or other differences.

Our obligations to one another command us to work together no matter what divides us. We need to bring our communities together to be one community, united as a single people in love and kindness. We need to push past simply allowing others to be themselves and embrace our differences. No matter what may divide us on the surface, we make each other better. By taking the time to learn from one another and combine our ideas we grow. Teach your children this by explaining that “you make me a better me.” We are stronger together than any of us is alone.

All the things that divide us are nowhere near the ties that bind us. We need to heal this world and bring its people together. Together we must be agents of love, unity, peace, and justice. Only then will we able to say that we have truly put our children first, and the world we leave for them is the one that they deserve.

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