I'm having a moody day. I got a fundraising letter from Care yesterday, asking for funds to help end poverty and female genital mutilation in Africa, and it kind of put a damper on my outlook. It didn't help that today, bringing home our Christmas tree, we walked past crocus and daffodil sprouts. That's right. Nothing says "global warming" quite like daffodils in December.
I didn't give Care any money. That makes me feel down, but this year's charitable giving has already come and gone. We upgraded to green power, which will be (for us) a chunk of change, but we felt like it was the biggest and most important thing to do with our money. I have to remind myself what I was thinking when I did it--that world poverty will worsen, that people's suffering will worsen, that war and strife will spread if I don't do something to help with global warming. It's the most dangerous thing facing the human race. Ever. There won't even be an Africa for those poor mutilated women to live in if we don't do something about our god-awful carbon emissions.
And so, looking at our tree, brightly lit, beautiful with paper garlands and snowflakes, I just feel even more guilty. That's a lot of electricity and a lot of CO2 sitting in my living room. The only thing that comes close to making it worthwhile is the joy in Fiona's eyes. But is that worth it?
I don't know. I just don't know.
1 comment:
W, you've got such a good heart! It's not many people who would feel so touched by what was, essentially, a piece of junk mail! Sometimes I have to turn away from so many of the awful realities in our world, just because the sadness of it all can pile up so quickly. Don't despair!
The important thing to remember, I think, is that we cannot be called into account for every poor action in the world, but only our own. That makes the job a little easier. People will do bad things, and no amount of your money will ever completely stop that.
I would cast my vote that bringing joy to Fi is well worth the price of a little CO2. A healthy diet still has room for a bit of chocolate, right?
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