Blessed Innocence

I've always been a bit of a late bloomer. I think it's partly due to being raised Catholic and having a boatload of "Catholic guilt" instilled in me at a young age - which I still carry with me today. Yes, it kind of helps to be Catholic to understand.

For example, when most kids were sneaking out to go to the latest party in some random field across town, I was probably home reading a book. Or watching a PG-rated movie. Or secretly listening to my Guns 'n' Roses tape that I knew my parents would likely confiscate. Ok, I exaggerate my lameness (possibly), but I wasn't thinking twice about bending the rules to get in some underage drinking or even worse...gasp...sex!

No, I saved all that until freshman year of college.

But consequently, this means my formative years were blessedly innocent. I was raised by two loving parents who wanted to keep me safe and happy, despite some rules instilled on me that I felt were unfair, unreasonable, or just downright ridiculous. They did the best they could to preserve my quality of life, and by the way, my innocence.

So when I was watching a Dateline special yesterday about a young woman in Pakistan who is fighting for women's rights after being a victim of rape, I was amazed. Her story was shocking, humbling, and unbelievably inspirational. Her name is Mukhtar Mai, and she is, as NYT columnist Nick Kristo describes, "an illiterate woman who used compensation money after being gang-raped to build a small school in which she herself enrolled."

The quality of life of a typical Pakistani woman pales in comparison to that of American girls. We are positively coddled compared to what many of these young women experience. Mukhtar is now trying to make a difference and provide a new standard of living, a new future for the young girls growing up in this country where they have long been given cruel and unfair treatment. I realized watching this news segment how lucky I was, how taken for granted my quality of life and experience has been.

I hope her story perseveres, grows, envelopes the world and brings a sea change for generations of Pakistani girls to come.

More information on Mukhtar Mai and how we can all choose to help.