Make Every Day a Mandela Day

　　July was a strenuous month for all South Africans. Their national hero,Nelson Mandela, lay in a hospital bed in Pretoria, the nation’s capital, fighting for hislife as doctors tried to treat him for a recurring lung infection. As the country’s peoplesent an endless stream of good wishes and prayers to the inspiring statesman,their thoughts turned to July 18 – Mandela’s 95th birthday.

　　On this day in 2008, while celebrating his 90th birthday in London’s HydePark,Mandela commented, “It is time for new hands to lift the burdens. It is in your handsnow.”

　　He was calling for people across the world to celebrate his birthday by acting onthe idea that each person has the power to change the world.

　　In November 2009, the United Nations subsequently declared July 18 to be NelsonMandela International Day in recognition of Mandela’s “values and his dedicationto the service of humanity” and to acknowledge his contribution “to the struggle fordemocracy internationally and the promotion of a culture of peace throughout theworld.”

　　Nelson Mandela, a lawyer, anti-apartheid activist, banned person, 1956 treasontrialist, Robben Island prisoner, Nobel laureate and the first elected president of ademocratic South Africa, spent 67 years trying to make the world a better place, andso people are encouraged to spend at least 67 minutes of their time on Mandela Daydoing community service.

　　This year, because of Mandela’s hospitalization, local and global interest inNelsonMandela International Day was higher than at any time in the past. Ordinary peopleacross the world, along with celebrities and government leaders, found simple waysto honor Mandela’s ideals, donating unread books to a local library, picking up litteror going to an old age home to spend time with the elderly. Others helped buildschools, cooked for orphans or shopped and ran errands for housebound invalids.

　　The ways in which people can serve their communities are only limited by a person’s imagination.

　　Mandela Day has now gone beyond celebrating Nelson Mandela’s life, and has morphed into a global call to action that is meant to help everyone understand thatthey can have a positive effect on the people around them.

　　Mandela once said: “What counts in life is not the mere fact thatwe have lived. Itis what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significanceof the life we lead.” The best way to honor this man and his legacy is to takeaction, inspire change, and make every day a Mandela Day!

　　THE EDITOR

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