Ten year-old Dalton Sherman, a fifth grader, was the opening keynote at a big beginning-of-school pep rally for the Dallas Independent School District. He was speaking to thousands of people. I just know he's had good people on his side, helping him get to this place. The result is living proof of what is possible when a boy believes in himself.
Check out this clip . . . and then tell me what you think by clicking on the comment tag below or sending me an email.
(If the clip isn't visible, go to this link to see it)
All I can say is I BELIEVE . . . in Man-Making.
Well?
This kid is incredible! He speaks better than half our politicians. Obviously he has been given support and encouragement from some very good men (and women too of course). He sounds like he really understands that the significant people (at least some decent number of them) around him must have (and exhibit) a belief in him to allow him to grow and mature successfully.
ReplyDeleteI volunteer at a place for boys in trouble with the judicial system. Sadly, so many of its staff people treat the boys as if they are simply objects that are just there, will pass through (with little or no real education- more babysitting than anything), and then some huge percentage of them will move on and eventually wind up in jail.
That is the overriding sense of what will happen to these boys and the obvious converse of what Dalton speaks about in this clip.
If a child is not believed in positively, there's a very good chance that the negative beliefs in them will create a self fulfilling prophecy of a bad ending. That's why most of the stuff we volunteers do with the kids demonstrates in some way or another that we believe in them and care about them.
Tonight, I/we will do a piece on prejudice and stereotyping and how words can be used as weapons. They will have a chance to speak to how prejudices and stereotyping have hurt them and how they themselves (knowingly and unknowingly) use some of the same things to hurt others. I will also discuss my viewing and admiration of our friend young Dalton.
Thanks for the inspiration.
All I can say is WOW!
ReplyDeleteThis boy is a living proof of what positive affirmation can do to a person. It really awakens "something" in the core of the human heart.
It happened to me. I was a very closed person then, but, I was lucky enough to have found people that "listened" to me & affirmed the inherent "good" in me.
The challenge that is in front of me now after watching the video clip is to not give up on people. I have to remind myself all the time to "raise people up" instead of putting them down (of which I have a tendency to do).
Again thanks!