Sing with me:
If I had a million dollars (If I had a million dollars)
I'd buy you a house (I would buy you a house)
If I had a million dollars (If I had a million dollars)
I'd buy furniture for your house (Like a nice chesterfield or an ottoman)
Recently, I'm coming to realize how much I agree with the Bare Naked Ladies when it comes to spending a windfall.
If I had a million dollars, well, I'd first give some to Ruth House and Lutheran Malaria Initiative. And then I'd buy a house. Yes, we already have a house. Well, a condo. But I'd buy another house.
This sounds a bit excessive, perhaps. Who needs two houses?
Well, the biggest regret in my life is that I'm raising 2 delightful girls hundreds of miles away from my parents. And BestestHusband's parents. And the rest of our extended family. Thousands of miles, even. And we don't see them often enough. If they lived closer, life would be better. Now, I know my parents would never truly be happy in Boston. Or even in the 'burbs. But I could see them being happy in New Hampshire. Especially rural New Hampshire.
So if we bought a house in New Hampshire, we might be able to persuade my parents to come live in it for part of the year. The non-snowy parts, of course. We'd buy a house with lots of rooms. Or maybe even an in-law apartment out back. They could live in the main house. We'd live in the in-law apartment on the weekends. Or maybe stay in the main house and have friends stay in the in-law apartment. My parents could decorate the place in a way that would make it comfortable for them. They would have privacy most of the time, and controllable doses of chaos when we came to visit. If they needed to come to Boston, it would be an easy drive. If we wanted to visit or drop off the girls for a weekend, it would be an easy drive. And we could see them a few times a week or month instead of a few times a year.
And in the winter, my parents could flee the snow and head back to Texas. We could use the house on weekends as a base camp for hiking and skiing adventures. Or just leaving Boston. We'd share it with friends, of course. It would be a great place to spend holidays and vacation time. Or just a weekend for a quick get-away.
This arrangement could solve many problems:
We need a way to see family more often
They worry about being a burden
We worry about the large doses of chaos that our household inflicts on them
A vacation home needs a caretaker
We don't have a big enough place to host the entire family at once
My dad loves improvement projects, as does BestestHusband's dad. We could get a place big enough that the whole extended family had a bed. We could start hosting our niece and nephews from the far reaches of the country. We could have enough beds to host small church retreats or youth group events. I promise we'd share in the bounty! Think of the possibilities! Fireworks are legal for 4th of July! We could have a white Christmas every year! The girls could grow up with plenty of opportunities to roam in the woods!
If only I had a million dollars.
Anyone want to join me in praying for a windfall?
Showing posts with label Lutheran Malaria Initiative. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lutheran Malaria Initiative. Show all posts
Friday, September 28, 2012
Thursday, September 27, 2012
How Much Would You Pay?
Slow down your reading for a moment and try to answer my questions with specific dollar amounts:
How much would you pay to save your family's lives?
Really, try to name an amount. Everything you have?
How much would you pay to save your best friend's family's lives?
Half of what you have?
How much would you pay to save a stranger's family's lives?
Maybe a few hundred dollars?
What if you could do it for $10?
Would you do it?
If you knew that each $10 could protect a family from disease, a deadly disease, how many families would you agree to save?
What if you heard that the disease affected mostly mothers and children?
What if is was preventable with bed nets and education?
Because I'm describing malaria.
It kills 1 million people, mostly mothers and children, every year. It can be prevented with bed nets and education. And you can provide these resources to a family for $10. How much is $10? A week's worth of Starbucks coffee? Half a manicure? Maybe a whole manicure if you don't live in Boston...
For the price of one insurance co-pay (for really great medical care) to see the pediatrician, I could save the children of TWO ENTIRE FAMILIES from malaria. I could provide them with life-saving medical care for the price of a wellness visit for my child. We have SO MUCH HEALTHCARE at our disposal. They have so little.
But $10 can change that for a family.
Look in your wallet right now. How many families can you help right this instant? Ok, if you're like me, you might not carry cash very often. But you certainly have $10 in your account. Possibly more than that.
How much would you give to your favorite neighbor to save his family? So why not give it to your distant neighbors in Africa to save their families?
Please consider supporting the work being done by the Lutheran Malaria Initiative. The lives of families in Africa really do depend on it.
How much would you pay to save your family's lives?
Really, try to name an amount. Everything you have?
How much would you pay to save your best friend's family's lives?
Half of what you have?
How much would you pay to save a stranger's family's lives?
Maybe a few hundred dollars?
What if you could do it for $10?
Would you do it?
If you knew that each $10 could protect a family from disease, a deadly disease, how many families would you agree to save?
What if you heard that the disease affected mostly mothers and children?
What if is was preventable with bed nets and education?
Because I'm describing malaria.
It kills 1 million people, mostly mothers and children, every year. It can be prevented with bed nets and education. And you can provide these resources to a family for $10. How much is $10? A week's worth of Starbucks coffee? Half a manicure? Maybe a whole manicure if you don't live in Boston...
For the price of one insurance co-pay (for really great medical care) to see the pediatrician, I could save the children of TWO ENTIRE FAMILIES from malaria. I could provide them with life-saving medical care for the price of a wellness visit for my child. We have SO MUCH HEALTHCARE at our disposal. They have so little.
But $10 can change that for a family.
Look in your wallet right now. How many families can you help right this instant? Ok, if you're like me, you might not carry cash very often. But you certainly have $10 in your account. Possibly more than that.
How much would you give to your favorite neighbor to save his family? So why not give it to your distant neighbors in Africa to save their families?
Please consider supporting the work being done by the Lutheran Malaria Initiative. The lives of families in Africa really do depend on it.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
World Malaria Day
Have you ever had malaria? No, thankfully, neither have I.
It's not something we have to worry about here. For this we should give thanks daily.
Because in other parts of the world, you have a good chance of losing your children to malaria. Your pregnant sister. Your own life.
Malaria kills 1440 people every day. Someone every 60 seconds.
The Lutheran Malaria Initiative is working with partners around the world to reduce the deaths caused by malaria. With a bed net and some education, lives are being saved.
Today is World Malaria Day.
What should you do?
At 2:40pm, stop for a moment and consider what our lives would be like if malaria was as dangerous here as it is in Africa. Look around your family and wonder who would be taken by the disease. Imagine the conversation you'd have with your friend after she lost her second child to malaria.
Pray for the people who live with such a reality.
Look in your wallet. Do you have $10? This is enough to save one family. Consider donating to the Lutheran Malaria Initiative. 100% of your donation will go to mosquito nets and education. Yes, 100%. And a bed net can protect an entire family. Imagine that. $10 = saving a family.
And when you're done, pass this info along to family and friends. You have the ability to make a concrete and lasting change to families around the world. So does your sister. Your mom. Your college roommate. Your neighbor. Your dog-walker. That's a lot of change...
It's not something we have to worry about here. For this we should give thanks daily.
Because in other parts of the world, you have a good chance of losing your children to malaria. Your pregnant sister. Your own life.
Malaria kills 1440 people every day. Someone every 60 seconds.
The Lutheran Malaria Initiative is working with partners around the world to reduce the deaths caused by malaria. With a bed net and some education, lives are being saved.
Today is World Malaria Day.
What should you do?
At 2:40pm, stop for a moment and consider what our lives would be like if malaria was as dangerous here as it is in Africa. Look around your family and wonder who would be taken by the disease. Imagine the conversation you'd have with your friend after she lost her second child to malaria.
Pray for the people who live with such a reality.
Look in your wallet. Do you have $10? This is enough to save one family. Consider donating to the Lutheran Malaria Initiative. 100% of your donation will go to mosquito nets and education. Yes, 100%. And a bed net can protect an entire family. Imagine that. $10 = saving a family.
And when you're done, pass this info along to family and friends. You have the ability to make a concrete and lasting change to families around the world. So does your sister. Your mom. Your college roommate. Your neighbor. Your dog-walker. That's a lot of change...
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