Unheard and Unseen

My entire life I wanted to be the power behind the power - the anonymous influencer. Being in front was a place of fear.  I saw strength in working behind the scenes to impact the words said.  I had my ideas voiced even whilst my voice was unheard.  I also viewed it as powerful to have my concepts brought to visible reality while I remained in the background.  To be unseen guaranteed anonymity.  Being unheard and unseen as my agenda was carried out was my comfort zone. 

I lived this fiction-filled, power behind the power fantasy for 40 years until June 3, 2010.  The curtain of being unheard and unseen that I stood behind was torn away when I found myself jobless after eleven years of giving my voice and vision to others.  I felt exposed.  I developed a new appreciation and desire for having the plethora of my talents seen and the power of my voice heard.

As I searched for answers, I stumbled into a community that embodies unheard and unseen.  Their silence was not self-inflicted.  The cloak of invisibility cast upon them was imposed by others.  I discovered a portion of this community at Mustard Seed School, an emergency school serving children experiencing homelessness in the Sacramento region. 

How could I continue in my silence knowing there are approximately 1.5 million homeless children in the United States¹?  How could I consciously operate in the shadows when there are over 950,000 homeless school-age children¹? How could I be satisfied with being a so-called power behind the power when 41% of these children are behind grade level in math and 33% lag in English Language Arts skills²?

I have come to the realization that I can no longer operate in the role of silent influencer.  The community of homeless children is truly the unheard and unseen. They need a voice of someone that is willing to be the power on their behalf.  I am committed now to being that voice!

Humanity cannot continue to walk by children, our country's future, with ears muted to their cries, eyes clouded to their pain. The time is now!  It is time that we recognize the plight of the Unheard and Unseen.

¹America's Youngest Outcasts: State Report Card on Child Homelessness. (2009). Retrieved January 11, 2011, from The National Center on Family Homelessness: http://www.homelesschildrenamerica.org/findings.php

² Barton, P. E. (2004, November). Why Does the Gap Persist? Educational Leadership, 62(3), 8-13.