comic relief

so my son's school sent a memo round last week saying that the kids could wear something funny for money - so he went to school in his favourite PJ's and dressing gown. He does have slippers but they are old and rather manky so I hunted (and I do mean hunted) the shops yesterday for new slippers for him - where do we go now that adams and woolworths has gone???
so I ended up getting him some very plain black plimsolls - remember them from your school years.

anyways. so today is comic relief and out of all the evening long charity campaigns that are on TV, this one has to be the one that hits me the hardest.

I was watching celebrities doing stuff for charity like climbing mountains and doing a bit with Sir Alan sugar and couldn't help but laugh along - my kind of watching. In amongst this fun was the serious side of why they were doing it. There was this one where a baby was dying of malaria and it hurt to watch it. The child was about 5 months old and was just lifeless in its mothers arms and all they need is mosquito nets and some drugs - how hard can that be??

I like the way that comic relief works - they have set up loans where people can apply and then pay them back - instead of waiting for free handouts. A woman in Uganda has 5 kids and had nothing - NOTHING. then she got a loan for just £10 and started to grow coffee. She would take it to market but there was sooo much competition she would often walk 10K with bags of coffee on her back to return home (another 10k back) with all of her coffee.
She then set up a coffee house and now sells it worldwide along with it being fairtrade. She is doing really well and she says that she uses all of her money to put her 5 kids through school so that they can become accountants to help out...how fantastic is that...this woman still does back breaking work but is very happy.

The things that we moan and groan about are relevant to the lives that we lead and especially in todays current climates with people loosing their houses and jobs and having to go to refuge centres. I think, we should look to those people who haven't much but are happy. yes they are living hand to mouth, but aren't we all in our own little way, the difference there is the the distance they have ti travel to get medical help or are sooo reliant upon the weather for their food and they have to pay for education...it all seems a little more than here.
The thing that upsets me most is the medical side of things.
Recently I have been in hospital and got instant test and results - I felt truly humble to the NHS. Over in places with no NHS they still have to pay for their drugs and the god damn government is sitting in their nice houses with food on the table whilst their people are missing meals so that their kids don't die....it makes me sooo friggin made.
I will be an avid watcher and will donate as much as I can afford. If I could drop everything and go ut to help, I would like to say I would but I think I would be become tooo emotionally involved and would need some serious counselling when I got back. I appreciate that sounds selfish but they need someone supportive and not a liability!

So donate and give everything you can for these people and for people here...dig deep and then deeper. It costs just £5 to but a mosquito net - how many nets will you buy tonight - how many lives will you save by picking up the phone and donating your money too???
watch the show, laugh and cry on be on an emotional rollercaoster.
Do it - save a life.

my thought for this blog is how many lives ar you intending to save?