Having a Bad Day?

It’s quite natural for us, as humans, to consume ourselves with self-pity at the first sign of trouble or injustice in our lives. I thought I’d share a story with you which might help give some sense of perspective:

Siti was born 16 years ago on 26 June. Her spine was broken when she was a child and this has interfered with her growth. As a result, Siti is now only about 1 meter in height and she has a protruding spine and a deformed body.

Siti was born to an unfortunate family. Her father was a heavy drinker and gambler and would frequently beat Siti’s mother when drunk. When Siti was not yet a month old, her father lifted her up after fighting with her mother and threw her against a rambutan tree.

It is likely to be this that broke Siti’s spine. The problem was exacerbated by the fact that she never received any medical treatment.

One month after Siti was thrown against the tree, her mother died following a beating at the hands of her father, who then fled and whose whereabouts are still unknown. Siti was left all alone, disabled and disfigured. After her father ran away, Siti was taken in by a neighbouring faming family who had no children of their own. They then adopted Siti as their own child. After that Siti lived with her adoptive parents, and was raised and educated as their own child.

However, Siti’s suffering was not at an end. When she as in grade 5 of elementary school, Sitis adoptive mother died following an illness. Siti’s adoptive father then remarried with a widow who already had four children of her own. So, Siti now had four siblings. After this, Siti found herself gradually being edged out of the family. Her adoptive father’s new wife focused all her attention on her own children and showed little concern for Siti. After graduating from elementary school, Siti received no more schooling for two years and in the end was forced to go out into the fields to work, despite her physical impairment and her sadness at being rejected by her adoptive parents.

This is just a small part of Siti’s life story, taken from “Someone that Matters” (an investigation into the quality of care in Indonesia’s Childcare Institutions) reproduced with the kind permission of the Save the Children Alliance.

On this day, let us all be grateful for what we have, and let someone know they are appreciated!

I would like to personally thank the following people:

Karen Morris – for her generous support, making me cry and just being Karen.

Allan Cockerill – for his generous support & continued publicity

George Karahalios – for being totally crazy and offering his unlimited support & networking talents

Jo Harvey – for her generous support, eternal good mood, beautiful heart & for sharing the story

Carol Barry – for ALWAYS being there when I need to have a bitch or moan, and for being the optimist when I forget my head.

Bev Rolt – for spending forever on the phone with me teaching me stuff I don’t know, and for already helping so many Indonesian families

Sue Murdock – for kind donations and comic relief in the evenings!

Kristin Kyle – for continued support and publicity through Kids In Australia

Neil Richards – for sharing my love of Orangutans, gloating about the cricket and just generally backing me up when I think I’m crazy.

Erica Smith – for 20 years of “sisterhood”, sharing the ups, downs and turn-arounds.

Michelle Hayward  – for “getting it” and being as crazy as I am.

Kay Lam-Beattie – for impromptu legal advice and restoring my faith in solicitors (somewhat).

And most of all my beautiful husband Rick for daring to dream (when it’s not his gig) and my inspiring and awesome children – Loki, AJ, Matthew, Ashley, Bailey, Julian, Kelsey, Ailish & Charlie for being my light, love and reason to live. I hope one day, you can shine your brilliant lights into darkness with me.