two things to write about

#1. i recently had a 2d1n camp where i was a facilitator along with 3 others. not counting church camps, this is my first camp that i'm the group leader, leading a bunch of freshies. i wasn't looking forward to it because i don't think i make the cut for a group leader. but i didn't have much of a choice and knowing that i'll have co-leaders, i was intending to ride on their energy and ability and just fade off somewhere in the background. haha. i'm not the kind that likes to mix with new people. i was really kinda dreading the camp because of that. BUT i'm pleasantly surprised. i still don't think i'm a good leader because i'm bad at those bonding games and bonding talks. but being a facilitator for once has indeed been an interesting experience.
i'm glad that my group kinda bonded together by themselves. and i'm glad for 3 other facis to share the burden of leading the group. the fun part about being a leader is that you get to know the freshies. if you're in org comm, you probably won't get to talk to the freshies much because you'll just mingle with people in the comm. so it was fun knowing the freshies, sharing a bit of your freshman experience with them, playing games with them. fun aside, i'm thankful that the camp was only 2d1n. i don't think i'll have the energy to sustain as a group leader for 4 days. haha. but i don't regret being a faci.

#2. A-List Listings. some show that i saw on mtv, showing us different houses owned by mega rich people. a bit like teen cribs just that these people aren't teens. it's crazy to see what type of houses people can even build. it's ridiculous, if you ask me, to have such an extravagant house. there was this featured house at hamptons (known for its recreational facilities) that had its own tennis court, baseball field, bowling alley, jacuzzi pool, spa bed, sauna...the list just goes on. whatever you can think of, they have it. i'm amazed at the amount of money people actually have to be able to build such things. it scares me and got me thinking about the rich-poor-divide. looking at the A-list houses already places a LARGE gap between the middle income and them. can you imagine the divide between such a luxurious house and those who are homeless? some people live in an almost disgusting level of luxury while there are many others in the world who don't even have a roof over their heads. they sleep in slums, under overhead bridges, on the streets, begging for small change from passer-bys.
seeing such people already makes me (an upper middle income range) feel guilty. like i get to stay in a hotel, while they fight the crazy humidity in thailand on the dirty streets. don't the mega rich feel guilty that they live in such crazy big houses? if they can build a house that's worth almost a billion dollars, surely they can use that money to build normal houses for the poor. with that amount of money, i'm sure many homeless people can have a roof above their head. it's such a disgusting reality. the rich should reflect upon themselves and think about doing more constructive things with their money. donating bits and pieces of your money does not make you charitable if you still continue living your life in extravagance. donate so much of it such that you are on a more even ground with the rest of the world and bring the poor up to that even level is what makes you charitable.
the gap will not remain where it is and will only continue to get bigger if the mega rich continue to have A-list housing. we can just accept reality that this gap is never closing up. but hopefully it won't continue to grow wider.
till then,

J.