We who have so much….
I’ve had a lovely time away in the mountains with my husband and today all my children have come home from French camp, very tired, but happy and healthy.
It makes me realize how lucky I am. I’m so fortunate to live in a beautiful country that is safe and functioning, my children are healthy and I don’t need to worry about them every minute of every day.
It all got me to thinking about how little I do for those who are less fortunate than I am.
A year or so ago I read Tim Butcher’s amazing book about his travels in the Congo, Blood River. Since then I’ve read a couple of other books about the situation in that huge country. Did you know that the Congo is the worst place in the world to be a woman? Rape, murder, attacks with machetes, child abduction…they are all common. I mean really common. Hundreds of thousands of women in the Congo have lost everything, really everything. I knew the situation was bad, but I hadn’t realized until recently quite how bad things are, particularly for the women of the Congo.
This week Alissa is supporting actionkivu.org on her blog. She’s trying to raise $15,000 which Action Kivu will use to teach women to sew, so that they can support their families and also to pay for children to be able to go to school. You might want to step by. She even has prizes for contributors. It’s something really worthwhile. So if you have a moment….
Helen
August 13th, 2011 at 9:31 pm
I agree … with all the grumbling we all do about the little things that annoy us, I think all women living in the West should be grateful that we are able to live without the constant fear that these poor Congolese (and other countries) women have to suffer daily. I hope things change in this troubled country … have read shocking accounts which seem to be almost everyday occurrences there. Will definitely stop by the website you mention and hope the project can be one of many small changes to move the country towards a better future x
August 15th, 2011 at 11:48 pm
Thanks for the reminder about counting our blessings. We sponsored an Indian girl until she got married, aged just 16, which kind of left us wondering if we’d done any good really. However, I hope we made a difference.