Change begins with me

One Looney Idea

I was born on January 14^th, 1966. That means that THIS year, on January 15^th, I will be stepping into my fiftieth year of life. Each day will bring me closer to my 50^th birthday.

I want to do something significant this year, something that will not only be the change in my life, but will change the lives of others.

Would you like to join me?

***

On April 27^th 2006 our family arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to bring Yohannes into our family. 2016 will mark the 10th anniversary of our first trip!

Like me, you may have thought that adopting a child—from any place—was about creating a family.

It is.

However, if at the centre it’s about family, at the periphery it’s about community. Every one of us is part of a community. Ours grew beyond the borders of our living when we made the trip to Ethiopia.

            May 1, 2006

            It is shortly after 5:30 am. The sun is still neatly tucked beyond the horizon. I am awakened by the daily call to prayer. The melodic chant, initially soothing, becomes more insistent with each repetition. The loudspeaker drones on and then a chorus of creatures joins in: the commanding cry of the rooster, the howling plea of the street-dog, and the sharp squeal of the alley cat. A symphony of sonorous sound.

            Yohannes lies sleeping in his crib beside me. In time with the rhythmic tones, I catalogue his losses. Both of his parents have died. He left his village as a toddler, and travelled 800 miles to Addis. He was placed in an orphanage, and then moved to the foster home, to await our arrival. Now we are going to take him from his country. I wonder how he will survive such losses.

I am trying my best to take in the sights and smells, the culture and heritage, and the food and rituals of Ethiopia, in an effort to learn about Yohannes’ birthplace and craft a story for him. It is hard. It is not a holiday, or an adventure. It is a profoundly uncomfortable place to be, and a strange way to create family. We are becoming parents to this handsome and happy stranger.

We began a relationship with Ethiopia that we have not been able to turn our backs on. It is not like we really wanted to turn away, but life became undeniably more difficult after our first, and consecutive trips. As you may know, members of our family were in Ethiopia in ‘06, ’07, ’08, ’09, and ’13. And on the trip in 2009, our family grew again as Yohannes’ eleven-year-old birth sister Faven joined our family.

***

Our world is not an equitable place.

In Ethiopia, the majority of men, women and families build a life with less than a dollar a day. Roughly 39% of Ethiopians live below poverty (<$1.25 USD)—that is over 28 million people. The population of Canada is just over 35 million.

A dollar a day does not provide basic necessities.

Foreign aid—especially those who partner directly with Ethiopians—has been able to effect change in Ethiopia over the decades of my life.

• In 1966, the year I was born, 256 infants out of 1000 died before the age of 5. By 2012 that number had fallen to 68.
• Between 1970 and 2012, the crude death rate dropped from 21.3 per thousand to 7.8.
• During the same period, life expectancy rose from 43 to 63 years of age. 
• There have been significant advancements across the following areas: education, immunization, medical care, disease treatment and prevention, drinkable water and sanitation facilities. 

But, more needs to be done. Ethiopia is considered to be one of the most under-developed, poorest countries in the world. But, even though it is a country filled with struggle and devastation, it is built upon hope. It is a country of unparalleled beauty, from the people who are committed to helping one another and who embrace foreigners as if they are family, to the varied topography, home to an impressive array of agricultural crops and geographical phenomenon.

If I hadn’t been to Ethiopia four times, I would not be able to tell you that WE can make a difference in this country; I would not be able to tell you that CHANGE takes time; I would not be able to tell you that helping ONE individual helps a whole village; I would not be able to tell you that the organization Canadian Humanitarian is making differences that are SUSTAINABLE. Every trip that we made to Ethiopia had a component of Canadian Humanitarian in it. Here is a bit about their philosophy…

“Canadian Humanitarian decided that it needed to do something different than what was being done before.  While worthwhile, many NGO programs for children isolate one aspect of need, and only provide specialized help in one area, leaving gaps in the overall needs of a child.

We have developed our programs using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. The pinnacle of this Hierarchy is to achieve one’s potential.  Therefore, the main question that drives program activities and governing principles is: “What will help each child to reach their potential?”

Hope in the heart of a student allows them to work hard every day to achieve their goal of succeeding at school, despite present challenges. They are able to see how they can remove themselves from the cycle of poverty.”

(http://canadianhumanitarian.com/programs/)

We all live with challenges. At this point in my life however, I am living a life that is blessed with abundance. I don’t know why we have been so fortunate. But, I do know that it doesn’t feel good to measure our abundance against the scarcity that others experience. I want to do something about it.

Would you like to join me?

***

From January 15^th, 2015 – January 14^th, 2016, I am not going to spend more than a dollar a day (average) for discretionary items.

What does that mean?

It means that I will put one loonie into my purse each day.

• If I desire a latté at a local coffee shop, or a drink after a soccer game, I will need to save for FIVE days. 
• If I want to go for my monthly breakfast with my dad, or my two friends, Joy and Wendy, I will have to save for FIVE to TEN days each time, or eat at home and drink coffee with them. J 
• If I want to put my trademark stripes in my hair, I will need to save for SEVEN days—color at home, or FIFTY days—color at a hair salon. (Easy decision)
• If I want to buy a bottle of wine, I will have to save for FIFTEEN to TWENTY days, or drink less expensive wine. (I may as well quit.)
• The habit of spontaneously purchasing snacks will have to stop, cold turkey! Sorry kids, you are back to “Mom’s snack bag” again. 
• If I want to buy "you" a birthday present I will have to save for a lot of days, so I hope that you can forgive me. (I will however, think of you, and "it's the thought that counts".)
• Every time that I want to make a purchase, I will have to stop and think.

I am going to become a thoughtful and responsible consumer, not just for a year, but for a lifetime.

I want to make a change over the next year that will be meaningful and also difficult—something that will require me to make sacrifices. When I told Ward about my idea, he said, “That sounds like a looney idea.” He is a bit of a punster, and the name for my blog was born. Faven told me that there was no way that I could do it.

What do you think?

My family is going to pledge $5.00 for every day that I succeed in this challenge. The money will go to support the programs that Canadian Humanitarian has developed in Ethiopia. The 5-1 ratio is fitting because, in 2016 our celebration is two-fold: my 50 years of life, and the 10 year anniversary of our first Ethiopia trip: 50-10. Moreover, we have 5 children in our family: Kristin, Fraser, Faven, Laurèn and Yohannes. There are also 5 children in the Ethiopian sibling group that two of our kids are a part of, and who we all have embraced: Dagim, Buzinesh, Binyam, Faven and Yohannes.

I want to be able to do this, but I also know that it is not going to be as easy as it sounds on paper. I am not afraid to admit that I have been known to use "retail therapy" to get an instant (if not lasting) high.

I am asking for your support:

1.  Read and follow my blog, and send me supportive and encouraging notes. You know, like: “Hey Wendy, just sipping a caramel latté and thinking of you. Keep up the good work.”
2. Pledge your support. If you want to support the same campaign as us, that would be great. I can assure you that it will be money that is going to make a difference to a life in Ethiopia. However, if your heart is elsewhere, make a pledge to support my Loonie idea in your own way, but please let me know.
3. Start your own “One Looney Idea” campaign, and spend (or not) right alongside of me. Get supporters of your own, and let me know how you are doing.

Thank you for your time and attention. I am looking forward to sharing this next year with you.
One caveat: Our family is going to Mexico for a week in March to participate in the wedding of Fraser Flemons and Chelsea Carter. Clearly that is not going to be done on a dollar a day.

I would like to leave you with a story that was told to me by Vern, on our most recent Ethiopian Expedition.

“Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out "Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?"

The young man paused, looked up, and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean."

"I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?" asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die."

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, "But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can't possibly make a difference!"

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said,
"It made a difference for that one.” 
-Loren Eiseley