Doing What We Can

Saturday was my March for Babies walk. It was the first time in years that I had done something for a cause and it felt SO GOOD!

I used to do a lot of stuff for causes. It started when JimmyEW and I founded a student group in college called Take a Stand for Kids (TASK). It was a child abuse awareness group that focused on getting college kids to volunteer their time with the kids at Domestic Violence Shelters and Big Brother's Big Sisters. I just continued on from there. Any worthy cause around me I tried to participate in.

Since leaving my last social work job (for by brief stint as a city dweller almost 2.5 years ago) I haven't done anything. I was used to marching, protesting, organizing, counseling and networking with people to make the world a better place. And suddenly it just stopped and I really missed it.

But Saturday the amount of fulfillment I felt for raising over $300 and actually walking really surprised me!! I realized I was right about what I had thought all along. I can work my corporate job that I love and do the stuff that matters on the side. And it will fulfill me!!

Sometimes it's hard to find a way to give back. Many times it seems like you just don't have the time or money to do it. When my Best Friend FOREVER sent an email that she was walking, I thought about donating $20 to her but decided I'd like to walk instead. It didn't really occur to me until later, that me walking was going to be so much more beneficial. Instead of giving her my $20, I was able to raise $300!

And the only time I spent working on it was the time spent writing a few emails and a blog asking if people would donate. And of course I had to show up and walk for a few hours on a Saturday... in the FREEZING COLD. This was a good way to give back without a lot of time or money involved (btw, thank you so much to those who gave through donations and/or prayers. they were welcomed. And Mel, it did not rain, so thanks!)

And speaking about giving when you don't have the money. Sister HB has written before about Compassion International in this post. But what she really wants is for everyone to click this link to read about how simply writing a letter to a child will mean the world to them.

Read the blog article and see the comments to learn how you can write to a child who is already sponosored by someone but doesn't recieve coorespondance from them.

This second Compassion International Blog article is also a good read and pulls attention to how globalism and free markets impact people living in other countries. It talks about letter writing in reference to a young woman and the inspiring letters she recieves from her sponsor, an American college student. You can see how much a written letter means to a person struggling to survive in a third world country.

Its not always about giving money, but just about doing what you can with what you have. Thats really the best we can do sometimes. So, please click the links to learn how you can help, and have yourself a happy Monday!
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