I learned that when you get down to the very basics, we are all very much alike, and the things which we all want the most are to be loved and accepted by someone. This experience has been only one part of my life here in Brazil, but it has been the one which has most touched my heart, and the one which has motivated me to look even deeper for the root causes of how and why such situations are created. When you see with your own eyes a system abuse and carry out violence against the littlest and weakest of a society, you become very quickly motivated to examine, understand and fight against the root causes. Not in the plazas or in the streets. Cars will stop for a traffic light which is worth nothing and not stop for a child who is worth everything.
People give more value to things than to people.
Paulo in the words of the kids themselves is one of mere survival, of how they're going to live today. Life in Brazil is a very hard reality for a vast majority of the people. However, there also exists another side to Brazil. There exists among certain groups in the church, grass roots movements and other groups, an inspirational commitment to work for change, change aimed at the root causes themselves. There also exists among the Brazilian people a certain zest for life.