Traffic Lights and Tendus

Tonight I attended a Junior League meeting at the Center for People in Need in North Lincoln. We heard not only from the Center but also from the UNL Public Policy Center about the Lincoln Vital Signs Report which indicates that many parts of Lincoln have not yet recovered from the recession experienced in 2008.  Most strikingly, we learned that on any given day in Lincoln 1,000 children are living below the poverty line.

As I was driving home I stopped at a stoplight at 27th and O Street like I have many other times. I happened to be at the front of the pack this time however and as I waited for the lights to cycle through, I was struck by something.  Looking across O Street to the right, next to a store with its lights dimmed, a dozen or so children were following an instructor in a brightly lit room as he led them through a martial arts sequence.  As I looked then to my left across the street, on the second floor of a neighboring building, little girls stretched and turned next to the barre in a ballet class.

As I watched the hi-yas and the arabesques (and meanwhile nearly missed my green light) it struck me that it was 8:30 at night and these children were still working hard at their respective passions and interests.  It's children like these and still others that aren't fortunate enough to have the opportunity to pursue these passions that need our support and encouragement.

I don't know why the timing worked out tonight the way that it did, but I do know that I've never learned so much at a red light before. And as I went home to work on curriculum for our partnership with the Lighthouse after school program, I encountered a renewed sense of purpose in my task.