One Step Closer...

"Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat."

-Mother Teresa

Today I became one step closer. One step closer to truly doing something worthwhile. It's amazing to me how much your past influences your future. I lost my best friend to Cancer when I was thirteen. After twelve years of miracles, it was time for my Dad to be called home to my Heavenly Father. Even though I know that it was his time, I decided then, that I would do whatever I can to someday save someone's life. So here I am, 19 and doing everything I can to earn a spot in a nursing program. That, for me, means saving someone's life. Today, however, I came to the realization that maybe I don't need to literally save someone's life to satisfy my goal. Being a nurse is my dream and I won't stop until my dream comes true, but I decided that I had another dream. I'm going to go to India.

This is one of the children I am going to meet. His life is drastically different from mine. He is a child of parents with leprosy. Due to an incredible organization called Rising Star Outreach, I have the once in a lifetime opportunity to go to India and and serve people who have literally lost everything.

Rising Star Outreach Mission
Our mission is to help the leprosy colonies become thriving, self-sufficient communities.

We are accomplishing this through three major initiatives:

• to educate the colony children in a safe, healthy environment


• to provide leporsy patients with their own small businesses using micro-finance


• to address the unique health challenges of the colonies with mobile medical units

Leprosy is curable. Rising Star Outreach seeks to defeat it. Even so, people who have contracted leprosy must often spend their lives completely isolated from society, although they may have been cured.

They, and members of their families, sometimes find it impossible to marry, recieve education, and find work. An estimated 100 million people worldwide are victims of this discrimination. In India, there are over 700 "leprosy colonies" where the stigma of leprosy is inevitably perpetuated.

If caught early enough, Leprosy can be stopped before it ravages a body and ruins a life.

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So here I go. On August 9th, I will be on a plane to India. I'll be living in a leprosy colony at the childrens' orphanage for 17 days. I will see beautiful children with the sweetest spirits who have been forced out of society because of their parents' condition. I will also meet people whose bodies have been destroyed by Leprosy. I have no doubt that this will be the most shocking and difficult experience of my life. I am absolutely terrified. That's how I know it will be worth it. I'm one step closer to achieving my goal. There's not a doubt in my mind that I will come back a different person, a better person.