August 8th, 2008
A Different Way
Sometimes the anomalies in life just hit me. We’ve been struggling with the rampant growth of greenery (for greenery read weeds) in our garden this year. Everything is so green and lush. I have spent hours losing the battle to clear the bindweed, dandelions, nettles and horses tail from the ground, at the same time East Africa has been struggling with land so dry that the ground is little more than dust.
Why did someone buy me a sparkly orange fridge magnet of an octopus, when there are children in the world without fresh water and enough food to keep them alive? I’m not intending to be critical. We all get on with our busy lives and just like everyone else I’m tempted (and often give in) to buying the latest gadgets or new clothes that really I don’t need. But how can we design games to play tennis or bowling on our TV set, yet fail to make sure that everyone in the world has fresh water and food?
I belong to a group called Soroptimist International and our local group has been raising money recently in partnership with WaterAid . They have also raised money for the campaign, “Born Free from Aids, to help provide medicines so that new babies are not born with the disease.
One of the things that troubles me is that making a donation isn’t enough. If I donated my entire income it really wouldn’t make that much difference. Today I was reading some literature from Oxfam. They seem to understand that we are all different and we can help in different ways. For instance if you were adventurous you could volunteer abroad; you could help by volunteering in your home country; you could buy fair trade produce; recycle your phone or lobby for a fairer world. I’m glad we’re not just being asked for money. As someone who writes maybe I’ll try and do my bit by writing. If you have other ways of helping fighting for basic rights and against poverty let me know. Check out the Oxfam website if you’re interested.
