SMAD!

Today I was SMAD!

SMAD is a mix of two emotions..... sad and mad. I feel this one often. This happens when I waffle back and forth between sad and mad about something that happened or a comment that someone made.

Sad, because fundraising for a good cause leads you to see the best in some people AND it brings out the mediocre and even the worst in others. This also makes me MAD! Truly, I have a new appreciation for people who work so hard to motivate others to do good. I have been touched by the hearts of many who have embraced our efforts to make a difference in Haiti. Many have ordered one and some have ordered up to 200 cookbooks. The quantity doesn't matter as much as the attitude.

It has been challenging to communicate our Haiti experience. We traveled to Haiti one year ago and we still feel the urgency to DO SOMETHING! ......the moment I heard the orphanage had a list of children waiting to be cared for - I knew we had to do something. Transferring that urgency to others has been challenging to say the least. Some "get it" immediately. Why? Probably because life has provided them with experiences that allow understanding. Others "miss it" completely. Sad.


When Peter took us through the jungle in Haiti, we saw things that I had only seen in National Geographic. I witnessed the struggle for life. I saw children -- skinny and malnourished, smiling and curious, living life with way too little. These are the children on the waiting list. NOT because their parents don't love them....just the opposite! They love them so much they are willing to give them up so they can have food. FOOD!

I really should sleep now. This is sounding a little depressing and so much of our experience... in fact, MOST of our Haiti experience was exciting! We witnessed people, working together, determined to make change. I have five new people on my list of those who inspire me - all of them I met in Haiti last year. In two weeks I met five people who had dedicated their lives to serving children -- the children we met in the jungle, the little boy at the clinic and the little four year old girl who only weighed 18 pounds. Sadly I don't have a picture of this beautiful child. These children motivate me to keep going, to be a better steward of that which I have been blessed with, to give what I can - to work at understanding what the Lord would have me do.



We have sold 1400 cookbooks. 600 more to go. My goal - 2000 sold by the end of May! Then I hope Holt will run with it through the summer and sell another 2000. Look for the story at the end of the year. I think it will be a bit more cheerful than this one.

tash