Flashbacks to my 11 year old self

I was busy having life revelations when I discovered the 11 year old girl in Brazil. I began having flashbacks of my life as an 11 year old, full of day dreaming of future opportunities, wondering about the possibilities life would bring me, and also discovering the pains and torture of entering into teenage-hood.

Though this story is incredibly common (or maybe I know so much about human trafficking, and no - not from Taken) I was so glad that news.com.au posted this story. Not because I enjoy reading dramatic stories, which seems to be the grabbing point for many, but because I felt like the way this article was written was actually raising awareness of not only the issue but that there are organisations (such as 'The Pink House') that are actually doing something to help. Hint hint. 

What's crazy about this story is that this 11 year old girl isn't just one case, or one of many cases: the average age of trafficking victims is 12 years old.

What I'm listening to: All of Me by John Legend

news.com.au

As I said, there are many stories like these, but what took me by surprise was that I actually envisioned my life as an 11 year old. I was awakened from the illusion that life was tough and there was nothing I could do about - because we actually can do something about the swings life takes at us.

To understand that this girl, and many others, has been put in a situation that she can't change on her own, that she hasn't chosen to pervert herself, or even slept around just to keep things interesting, genuinely stirs me.

This isn't a problem because there are a few creepy people out there that just need to go to jail. There is a HUGE market for it. Everywhere.

There is an estimated 27 million people in bondage in our world, which means that millions of people actually want this. Not just that they are okay with it, they want it. Knowing this makes me chill slightly. And not in a chilled out way, in a blood turns cold kind of way.

This post isn't about ruining your life or making you feel incredibly guilty, but hopefully you have been briefly enlightened to this issue. All I aim to do is to share my thoughts on this topic, without shocking people or making anyone to feel uncomfortable.

There is more information on this topic here and if you are interested in helping in any way the A21 Campaign is a great place to start with 21 Ways to get involved. They have constant updates on what's going on including convicted human traffickers.

I am also interested in reading Matt Roper's Highway to Hell which the article from news.com.au is based on and I will share my thoughts after I have finished it.

Much love

B