Aren’t they all our children?
There are few things in this life more difficult to experience than the loss of one’s child. Jim Wallis, in WHO SPEAKS FOR GOD, tells a story that happened during the war in Sarajevo. A reporter who was covering the violence in the middle of the city saw a little girl shot by a gunman.
The reporter rushed to the aid of a man who was now holding the child. He helped them both into his car and sped off to a hospital.
“Hurry, my friend,” the man urged, “my child is still alive.” A moment or two later he pleaded, “Hurry, my friend, my child is still breathing.” A little later he said, “Hurry, my friend, my child is still warm.”
When they got to the hospital, the young girl was gone. “This is a terrible task for me,” the distraught man said to the reporter. “I must go and tell her father that his child is dead.”
He looked at the man in surprise and said, “I thought she was your child.”
The man replied, “No, but aren't they all our children?”
I think that is one of the great questions of our age that deserves an answer.
Aren’t they all our children? Those on our side of the border as well as those on the other side? Those of our nation no more or less than those of another?
Aren’t they all our children? The well-educated and the under-educated? The well-fed and the under-fed? Those who are secure and those who are at risk?
Aren’t they all our children? if we say yes, can we ever again pit them against each other? “If we have no peace,” said Mother Teresa, “it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”
There may be no greater question for our generation. And how we answer that question will determine the shape of our world for years to come.
51. What was the reporter doing when the shooting took place?
A. Telling a story. B. Having a meeting.
C. Reporting an event. D. Helping the wounded.
52. From the text we know the girl died .
A. in the hospital B. with nobody in front
C. soon after the shooting D. far away from her home
53. How many people experienced the sad story?
A. Three. B. Four. C. Five. D. Six.
54. Which can best express the point of a yes to the question “Aren’t they all our children?”
A. Health. B. Love. C. Wealth. D. Peace.
