It's easy to buy things you want when you don't see that kind of poverty every day. But if I was the one living in Somalia, and I was starving to death, and I saw my children slowly dying of starvation, and there are people in America going to Disneyland so their fat children can whirl around in the air on fun rides, I would say that it was not enough. Or even someone like Todd's boss, who has a daughter born with a lot of health problems and now has $20,000 in health bills he has to pay. But isn't it ok to do fun things now and then? You can't save the world by yourself. But if your neighbor was poor and had starving kids who looked like this:
would you walk past them on your way to TGI Fridays?
And then we talked about how and who to give to. In some cases, it is ok to give "handouts." But the best way is to help people help themselves. And then, how do you know that an organization is putting the money to what they say they are putting it to? Maybe our family vacations should be visiting places of poverty so that our family can see the people who need help face to face, so that if I want to buy Baby Katie a new cute outfit from Gymboree (not on sale), I will think about how meaningless that is when a child in X place is starving to death or doesn't have a home, etc.
So, I ask you, how much is enough? If you were the mother/father in Sudan with starving children, how much would you say is enough money to give? And then, how and to who do you give? Then, do a google image search for "starving children".
So then, tell me this-- I really want $200 worth of stuff for the kids' school (books, educational games, educational dvds) which we can't afford, but if I suddenly got a check for $200 to get it, should I get the stuff, or should I send it to a charity that helps starving kids around the world?
3 comments:
I wish I had the time to research what could or is being done to help people like that. I know I have heard that in some situations, the governments of these people have created the problem or caused it to persist. Then we are dependent upon our government to intervene and there are times when it is really complicated and might not help the world situation if we tried to intervene. I really think we all could spend more time researching how we can best help those in need, though. I want to go help people in Mosambique with the Care For Life Foundation sometime, 'cause what I have seen about their organization looks really good. You guys will have to come with me. :) The world is full of happy and sad. We can't let the sadness overwhelm us-- we should be happy and enjoy life, but we can't ignore what we can and should change-- even if it's not in our neighborhood or family-- the world is our family. Love you!
This is so close to a lot of what I have thought and felt. I could write a big old huge response to this email but essentially all I can say is, I think our natural tendency is to separate ourselves emotionally from those who suffer so that we don't feel guilty about our own lifestyles.
I think of things in terms of stewardships... I live in America and I have 5 kids that I am raising and teaching to be tommorrow's leaders... if I can teach them and get them on a path to sucess, and instill in them a deep caring and connection to their brothers and sisters in less happy circumstances, that is probably the biggest difference I can make.
But I also think that the question is a good one. Anytime we are thinking about something we want... if we're willing to spend that money on something uncessary, maybe it's money we can spare to help someone who doesn't have the money for necessities? I do believe that Heavenly Father will ask for an accounting of our stewardships one day. And I also think that he won't look too kindly on the fact that the children he blessed with 98% of the world's riches found themselves incapable of helping out the millions of people starving or dying of diseases every year. I think that Heavenly Father blesses us with privelege and material goods as part of our test... as an opportunity to be his hands, his stewards, to gain an opportunity to learn how to serve, to be like him. I do my best with what I have, but then my husband and I have never had much. I can't think of a single thing we own that we could sell for a lot of money, except perhaps my husband's laptop computer, which he needs for his work. I do worry about one day having a lot and feeling emotional ties to my "stuff."
Well, this turned into a long comment anyway. Maybe we can talk more sometime.
Sweet Girl when I have this conversation with myself and feeling guilty that I could blow 4 bucks on a sundae which only put lard on my fat ass when it really could have bought milk or vaccines for some poor child, I have to remeber that we can't do everything but that it is important that we do something. You've probably heard this story but a little girl was walking along the beach one day and there wer hundreds of starfish stranded on the beach. She as she walked along she threw starfish back in the ocean. Aman yelled to her that it doesn't matterwhat she does because she could never get them all back into the water,,,,she replied as she picked up another fish, but it matters to this one! So what I think of doing is just a cioncerted effort in SOME direction. I have been giving to Heifer project because they go to some of the very poorest places and give people the means to make a living and they have to promise to pass the skill on to someone else. for instance if they are given cows or goats, when the goats have babies they give to others to help sustain another family in this way a community is helped. I suggested one Christmas that instead of adult presents we all give to a charity we choose or one of our own choosing, but no one was in favor of it. You have a good heart darling girl.
Post a Comment