Sponsored Kids Letters--St Patrick's Day!

I wrote to all of my sponsored kids this past weekend, and I wanted to do something different from snow, since I've probably written many snow-themed letters over the years... so I settled on... St. Patrick's Day!

I am not Irish, and I really never have celebrated this holiday in a very big way, but I decided there were some cool reasons to write about it: (1) I think it's nifty that America is made up of so many different nationalities, and that we can even celebrate a particular one all together. (2) I talked about needing to wear green so you don't get pinched--and the fact that I wear green almost all the time anyway, since it's my favorite color, so I'm usually OK even if I forget about the holiday. (3) I mentioned that we also wish each other "the luck of the Irish," and that I already consider myself very lucky to have them (the sponsored kids) as part of my extended family!

Complete with some shamrock-decorated paper, and personalized notes to each child, and it was a nice little letter!

For my American kids, I was thinking Valentine's Day. I found an absolutely adorable Valentine-making kit, which I supplemented with doilies and stickers. The toy store I got the kits from offers free gift wrapping all the time--they offered to wrap the kits with heart paper--which they did, and they PILED on the curly ribbon! I'm so excited to think of these kids with so little getting such a gorgeous package, and having the "stuff" to make fun Valentines for friends and family. I told them in a note to be sure and make special Valentines for their moms....

It's really much more fun writing letters now that I know I'm writing once per month. I can enjoy the process rather than feeling guilty because it's been so long since the last letter! The principal at my school has given me the go-ahead to form a second-Saturday letter-writing group for sponsors in our school community. I'm thinking we could all get together and pool resources like scrapbooking supplies and ideas. Hope I get some people interested in coming to it!

Many heartaches

So... a lovely woman, one of the parents from our school, suffered a massive stroke a few days ago. She remains unconscious, after having had part of her skull removed to relieve swelling in her brain. If you happen to read this, please lift up a prayer for Joanne. She has maintained an awesome blog for years that has impacted thousands of people--a true woman of faith. She is only 38, and has two wonderful daughters and a terrific husband.

Yesterday, just as I was sitting in the car frantically signing a card for a mom-to-be whose baby shower I was late for, my oldest daughter called. "Mom... I was just in an accident. I don't know what to do." Steph is fine (but her car isn't). Lilia and I made our excuses at the baby shower, and drove up to the accident scene to be with Steph.

At one point, the man who hit her (a cab driver) told me, "And I just found out today I have cancer." He apologized then, saying I didn't need to hear that. What kind of cancer? I asked. Prostate. And it's advanced. "Been there, done that," I told him, and we talked a little about treatments, side effects, and support groups.

I go for weeks in which I pretty much stay in my little box. If I hear of tragedies, they seem far away. I do pray for people involved in such things, but it always seems to be distant, removed. These last few days, everything seems closer to home. Prayer seems a little more urgent: Please, please heal Joanne. Thank you that Steph wasn't hurt. Please offer comfort to the cab driver (His name is Arthur.).

Needless to say, I've been hugging Bob a lot.

365 Thank Yous—Book Recommendation!

I have only once or twice in my life read an entire book in one sitting, but one of them was this morning: 365 Thank Yous: The Year a Simple Act of Gratitude Changed My Life, by John Kralik.

Kralik's story begins in December 2007, which, as Kralik describes, was an absolute low point in his personal and professional life. On a hike on the mountains on New Year's Day (by himself because, on top of everything else, his girlfriend had just broken up with him), Kralik hears a voice telling him, "Until you learn to be grateful for the things you have, you will not receive the things you want." Kralik decides to write thank you notes—365 of them, in fact, over the ensuing year.

As he begins to write to people, thanking them for material as well as non-material gifts, his life begins to change. Kralik is not sure whether the changes came about because he wrote the notes, or whether his view of his life changed because of them, but either way, the outcome was astonishing.

It's a good read, and it will inspire you to begin recognizing all of the blessings in your life--and expressing that recognition through simple thank-you notes. 

Kralik is extremely transparent about his own shortcomings and insecurities, and so is very easy to relate to. He is also honest about the fact that writing thank you notes is not a sure-fire way to fix all of the problems in your life; he still faced difficulties and stresses, deadbeat clients, family issues, and financial problems—but he faced them with a different attitude and a new ability to see the parts of each situation that were actually blessings.

My first thank you note for my own 365 thank yous was to Kralik, thanking him for the book. I bet he'll get a lot of those! But just imagine, if a significant number of people read the book and undertake their own 365 thank you projects, what an increase in global gratitude would result! And that can only be a good thing. 

Children Catching It!

As part of our Bible Study gift exchange, in which we gave each other gift cards to charities, my daughter received a Kiva gift card. She chose to lend to Bayram Isgandarov in Azerbaijan, to enable him to buy 10 more sheep for his flock.

She is so excited!

She has learned that there is no rush as rush-y as giving. It is the most addictive activity out there. Now she is urging me to take on another sponsored child (yipes!), and she wants to (finally!) clean her room to earn allowance, so that she can help with a sponsorship.

How cool is that?!

Blogging From the Boonies: The Importance of Letter Writing

Blatantly stealing from Michelle's awesome blog.... But if you are a sponsor and you're not sure that your letters make much of a difference, watch this video!


Blogging From the Boonies: The Importance of Letter Writing

It's only wealth...

I've been reading Proverbs, and I was intrigued by Proverbs 11:16: "A kindhearted woman earns respect, but ruthless men gain only wealth."

Only wealth?

In America, that almost sounds like an oxymoron: Jumbo shrimp; only wealth. Don't we live as though wealth were the ultimate goal? To say someone is "successful" is to say, "he makes a lot of money." If we refer to someone "making a good living," it means, again, they make a lot of money.

And in education: the goal of education is to prepare students for good jobs. What do we mean by a "good" job? You got it--one with lots of money attached. But Solomon refers to "only" wealth, like it's no big deal, nothing to write home about.

Maybe we need to reexamine the meaning of a "good" job, a "good" living, and success. Could we make the aim of education be not about climbing the corporate ladder but rather about finding the passion God put in you and figuring out how to nurture that? Could a "good" job be one that is a good fit for the student's personality and interests? Or that results in a better life for someone else or a better world overall? (I love the tagline for the MacArthur Foundation: "committed to building a more just, verdant, and peaceful world." That about says it all, doesn't it?)

How would schools look different if we viewed wealth as "only wealth"?

Ideas for Small Groups/Bible Studies This Christmas

This year, our small group is doing something different for our Christmas party. Instead of the usual "white elephant" gift exchange (what an *American* concept!), we are giving each other gift certificates to charities. We'll each purchase a gift certificate/card from a favorite charity and bring it to the party. We'll do our usual game (My husband reads--very dramatically-- How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and every time he says the word "who" we pass the gift in our hands to the next person. At the end of the story, the gift in your hands is now yours!).

One of the ladies had a brilliant idea: We are giving each gift certificate in a coffee mug (now dubbed "a cup of love"), so that as we use the mug through the year, we can remember the charity who received our gift. (The mug I have pictured above can be found here--I think it would be perfect for this kind of gift exchange!)

Here is a list of charities (my favorites) that I compiled for the group. Maybe you have a group that might like to use this idea? Some will involve the buyer choosing how the donation is spent, and some (like Kiva and Donors Choose) give the recipient the fun of choosing:

Charity gift card options

1. Charity Choice: You choose the amount, buy the card; the recipient chooses the charity from 14 categories of charities.
2. World Vision Gift Catalog: Give a rabbit, a goat, a soccer ball, etc. Most items are $25.00 or more, but on the lower left side of this page, you’ll find the option to look at items that are “under $20.”
3. Kenya Kids in Need: This is a charity that I work with a lot. This URL takes you to our online shop. It is set up to allow sponsors to buy gifts (and necessities) for our sponsored children, but you can always put in “greatest need” in the memo line, and they will distribute the item. In the case of an item (like a pair of shoes), they will email you a photo of the child with the item (can take up to 2 months before you get the photo).
4. Donors Choose: This organization supports U.S. classroom teachers. On this page, you can either have a gift card mailed to you, print it yourself, or have it emailed to the recipient. Minimum $10 donation, and the recipient then chooses the classroom project to support. When it is funded, the person who chose the project to support will receive an emailed "thank you" from the teacher.
5. Kiva: A little bit different; a gift card for Kiva lets the recipient choose an entrepreneur to support with a “microloan.” Minimum $25. When the loan is repaid, you receive notice that your $25 is now available to reloan, donate to Kiva, or cash out.
6. The Heifer Project: Similar to World Vision gift catalog; you choose the gift (a share of a gift of trees, or a share of a pig, etc.) and then you can print out a gift card that announces the gift.
7. LifeChange: This is our very own Vineyard’s program. Cool part: 100% of the donation goes to the charity; no administrative fees or anything.
8. Compassion International also has a gift catalog; you may purchase a number of items for needy children across the world, like a soccer ball ($13), a chicken ($16), or a goat ($45).
   

I would love to see Christmas become a holiday where this sort of thing is the norm rather than the exception. (My husband patiently explains to me that our economy would collapse if everyone donated to charity rather than buying unneeded items for each other.... Hmmmm...) But imagine a world where there was this huge holiday, with music and decorations, and concerts, and ... everyone helped make life a little better for someone else!