Haiti

I wish I could say that I know that everyone is heartbroken over what has happened in Haiti.

I wish I could say that everyone wants to be able to fix it, help, ease the pain.

I wish I could say that everyone is willing to go to any lengths to assist, to aid, to help, to heal.

But I've found out over the past couple of days that not everyone actually feels that way. That's a hard pill to swallow.

Some think the Haitians somehow brought this on themselves.

Some think our tax dollars shouldn't be spent on aiding the country, the people.

I'm thankful that there are people who see beyond the politics. I am thankful that there are organizations who are aided by government dollars and by private donations who are stepping up. I am thankful that there are individuals who have economic resources that are donating far more generously than I can.

I plan to donate things- I have sacks of little girl's clothing in Teagan's closet. A time will come when donations are needed as lives start to rebuild. I have excess in my home that someone else is now without. I'm content with waiting until my donation can be most helpful.

I pray. Often.

I've added a short list of bloggers I found that are in Haiti. Primarily US citizens who have given their lives to work in Haiti through ministry groups. I encourage you to visit their blogs and read their stories and to share words of encouragement with them. I've also added information about donating to an organization that I know gives all of your donation directly to those in need (donations don't go to administrative costs)- UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief)- and that offers donation opportunities (non-financial).

What breaks my heart... when I think of Haiti, I think of orphanages already caring for children beyond their capacity... I think of poverty beyond anything I can imagine... I think of the slum villages built onto mountainsides... and when I think of the earthquake... and I see the pictures of crumbled orphanages, a children's hospital that is just a pile of rubble, the bodies layering the streets... and I hear about front end loaders and dump trucks being used to move bodies... and I think of the families who can't find loved ones, haven't heard from children, husbands, mothers...

Politics and Image suddenly don't seem so important, suddenly aren't part of the equation.