You often hear folks lamenting the ills of the world. Yet when you tell them to do something about the injustices, you get that old worn chestnut about how one person can’t change the world. I have always felt that those people were shortsighted; you don’t need to change the world, just change your part in it. As a non-religious person who believes in tithing, I give money, food, or just a smile whenever I can. Here is another blogger who is making a difference in the lives they are encountering. This is a beautiful, poignant, and self aware post. Enjoy!

Africa far and wide

 

The story of Rudi

A token plastic elephant, my silent promise

A few months back, I met an incredible woman. She was walking alongside a dusty, endless road, very slowly and noticeably too old to be carrying a small child on her back. I stopped and asked her where she was going and would she like a lift? She said ‘No, she is almost home.’ I asked if the child was her grandchild to which a brief story came tumbling out. And while she makes up one in millions of the same story, it wasn’t any less shocking.

I took a photo of her and gave the child a small plastic toy that my kids could quite frankly do without. She thanked me and continued walking. It seemed silly, silly to give her a little plastic made-in-China elephant after listening to her brief tragic story, like I had missed…

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