I guess today is something called "Blog-Action Day....Poor "Apparently all through the year this organization invites bloggers to make entries on particular subjects."
An internet friend just sent an e-mail to visit her site and read what she had written about poverty. It was very thought provoking. I have listed a link to her website below.
http://ldspaz.blogspot.com/2008/10/ahem-blog-action-day.html
I would like to approach the topic from a different viewpoint. A few years ago, my daughter went to Ethiopia on a medical humanitarian aid trip. It was only ten days or so long, so they didn't save the world. The doctors who went treated all sorts of maladies, many of which probably came back when the team left. When the doctors told the people that they just needed to drink clean water to avoid many of the diseases, they replied that the doctors just didn't understand.
The village water well have been filled in by the Communists many years ago. The whole village was so poor that it couldn't afford to drill another one for clean water. Every day the women would have to walk several miles down to the river to get water in their empty anti-freeze (or other) plastic jugs. The water was full of parasites, which the people then drank and got sick. Even water for gardens and animals had to be hauled back this way. Food consisted of ingera, (sp) a flat pancake type of bread and not much else. House were made of mud and shared with animals. Food cooked inside over fires produced smoke that stayed in the house.
We raised money to send large water filters to the village. They were taken into the country in someones luggage because the government of the country doesn't allow that type of thing. We don't know if they were ever used. A year or two ago, the LDS church dug a well for the people. Sometimes we ask why we help
people in other countries when we have poor here at home. I wondered that myself, until I realized that we are all brothers and sisters and need to help each other. Our government, though not perfect, does give aid the poor in our own countries. In some of these other countries, the government does nothing for the poor and probably even wishes they would cease to exist.
Poverty is sad every where. We need to open our eyes and be a part of the solution.
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5 comments:
Very thoughtful post. I'm glad the Church helped them. We are all brothers and sisters.
Thanks for the link...good thoughts as well. I hope I didn't come across as suggesting we don't help at all outside the US, I'm just trying to get people to realize there's a need here too. Good blog!
I have often felt the same way, about helping here at home, before elsewhere. Honestly, your comment about us all being brothers and sisters was really eye-opening for me. Of course you are right. If we have the opportunity to help, whether at home or abroad, we should do it. No matter the why or wherefor ... if we can, we should.
Mary,
Thanks for a very touching blog entry. It gave a good reminder of how truly blessed we are to live in this country ... to add a few extra dollars to fast offering and the humanitarian fund.
I have been thinking about this topic a lot lately, and it has helped me look around and realize how much I have. I know my children don't have a clue as to how blessed they really are--it's good to look around in the world and see the reality of things. It breeds gratitude.
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