tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15766662.post1160374004167466960..comments2023-05-28T07:59:23.224-07:00Comments on across the gypsy flat road: Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16175187905212028267noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15766662.post-80721019711672320152008-10-21T14:55:00.000-07:002008-10-21T14:55:00.000-07:00I have been thinking about this very thing alot la...I have been thinking about this very thing alot lately... about living a life of luxury and taking it for granted. I remember so well the poverty and desperation I saw in Venezuela, Honduras and even in rural Alabama. I swore I would never forget it and I haven't but it doesn't impact me daily like it once did and I feel so badly...this post is a good reminder for me! Thanks!aubreyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15442679388735065125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15766662.post-82505722103920557432008-10-20T19:24:00.000-07:002008-10-20T19:24:00.000-07:00So Elizabeth (the one in Hong Kong) emailed me her...So Elizabeth (the one in Hong Kong) emailed me her response, and I'm posting it here. <BR/><BR/>I know that feeling of not being able to walk down the street without a little hand infront of my face, begging for food or money. I dont get that in Hong Kong, but I do get that here in the Philippines, I saw it in Indonesia and in Africa. Its absolutly heartbreaking. When I was in Davao, Lindsey and I were walking down the street, and there were these two little boys, they couldn't have been older than 5 or 6 years old. Completely filthy, destitute looking. They walked beside us and held out their little hands, covered in grease and dust. Lindsey looked at me, and said, "Don't give them money." I was mortified! She comes from the same church as I, and has a huge heart for the Filipino people - how could she tell me not to give this little boy money!? Then she pointed down the sidewalk a bit, to two older boys, maybe 13 or 14, holding sticks. "If you give them money, those older boys will just beat the little boys up and take their money. If you give them anything, give them food. That way, at least they can eat it before it gets taken away from them." And the heartbreak doubled. How does our world get to this point - where older boys are stealing from younger boys. Both just as hungry, both just as desperate. The older boys have learned that they are too old to beg, that people will just pass them by with a dirty look. But its hard to pass a hungry child. But it's also easy to steal from a hungry child. And in truth - that is what our country does, every time we deny aid to the war torn areas of Mindanao because of "political" reasons, everytime we retract funds from clinics in Africa like Stephanie talked about, every time we privatize the most natural resource on earth - water, every time we lay claim to another country's resources as our own (oil, rubber, diamonds, coal) - we in essense, steal from a hungry child. We are no better than those boys with sticks - only difference is - they are hungry too. We're just greedy.Stephaniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16175187905212028267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15766662.post-47742603559071041352008-10-20T18:34:00.000-07:002008-10-20T18:34:00.000-07:00Great post! I like the paraphrased quote about sh...Great post! I like the paraphrased quote about sharing blessings. I feel that way a lot. It is easy to get bogged down in our limitations because of the size of our house or our budget or whatever. But we are so blessed to live in such abundance, and I thank you for reminding me of that.Lisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10755406094939522956noreply@blogger.com