Her name is Maria

I lose focus sometimes. Does that ever happen to you? I re-read my last posting and was struck by how far I had missed the point. It was like a voice prompted me saying:

Her name is Maria!

It seems I was describing the forest without identifying each of the solid, enterprising "trees". The micro-credit program is a total success because of the hard-working individuals who have the ideas, put in the work, market the products, pay back the loan and start the process all over again. And each of the "trees" have names.

The owner of this poultry micro-credit enterprise is Maria Esperanza Mendoza. She is the third person from the left in this picture. (l to r; Orlando Montiel, Nicaraguan Micro-Credit Project Officer, Wilmer Correa, Nicaraguan Interpreter, Maria, Maria's daughter and Merry Fredrick, Self-Help's Executive Director)

So, next time I mention "micro-credit enterprises" just remember that I am talking and thinking about Francisca Lopez, Theresa Espinoza, Magdelina Gonzales, Eva Chavarria, Maria Antonia Guiardado and hundreds like them in Ghana and Nicaragua who work every day to improve their family's life forever.

Chicken for Supper

My family and I had chicken on the grill for supper last night. It was very good and there was a lot of it. But I almost forgot to remember. Protein sources (beef, chicken, pork, eggs, lamb, legumes, etc.), while commonplace in the U.S., aren't in most of the world.

It wasn't that long ago when I was in Nicaragua visiting some of Self-Help's 'micro-credit enterprises.' That term makes it sound so clean and efficient. Here's a picture of a very successful micro-credit enterprise. It's a chicken coop, if you can't make it out... concrete, posts, tarp and wire. But this business provides eggs, meat, fertilizer and income to a woman and her family. Because of the $100 investment we (was it you?) made, this family has more than a chance to break the poverty cycle... they have hope -- hope that tomorrow will be better than yesterday, hope that their daughter can stay in school past the age of 12, hope that this new-found financial independence can lead to more.

We're not talking about building up their 401k for retirement. Financial independence (for them) means being free of the high interest charged by the local money-lenders. It means standing on your own. It means being self-reliant. And that tastes pretty good no matter where you live.

Just being kids

I've included this photo from our recent (March 09) trip to Nicaragua. It was my first time visiting Self-Help's in-country staff and the programs they administer. I was floored. They do so much with so little.

Those familiar with Self-Help's programs know that we have feeding centers that provide a once-a-day porridge of corn meal, a pinch of barley malt and a little sugar for pre-schoolers in rural communities. The kids love it. It does much to battle malnutrition at an important developmental time for these children. While there are plenty of cases of hungry and diseased kids (a subject of another blog), I thought you might like to see the faces of kids who have been coming for some time. Here's one such photo... of kids being kids.

Raking Leaves and World Hunger

It is fall (or autumn, for the purist) where I live. It's an especially beautiful season for those not acquainted with the temperate zone. Once a year, we experience cool nights and warm days, maturing crops and changing leaf colors. Depending on the tree and the variety, we get beautiful shades of reds, yellows, oranges, greens, browns and more. And those stunning leaves all fall down -- which brings me to the subject of this post.

Raking is required. See, if you leave the leaves -- you end up with a mess. With the coming snow, they get wet and heavy and eventually kill the grass they fall on. So, they must be picked up. While some choose the mechanical methods like leaf blowers, lawn mowers and neighbor kids, I prefer the old-fashioned way. It involves a pair of gloves, some leaf bags, a rake and a sunny afternoon.

As I was trying to get as many leaves as possible in bag #6, my mind drifted off to world hunger. That's when I realized the similarities. How could sweating on a 50 degree day in my comfortable back yard apply to one of the major challenges on this globe?

You see no matter how careful I was; no matter how well-intended I was; no matter how diligent, how patient or how energetic I was -- THERE WERE STILL LEAVES THAT DIDN'T STAY IN THE BAG. I simply could not capture every single one. And that's when it hit me. I was focused on the wrong thing. I was not concerned (or even thankful) in the least with the thousands of leaves I had bagged... but was fixated on the tens that weren't. Just like world hunger -- only the numbers are reversed.

While we might not be able to save everyone in the world from starvation, we can save a few. Let's start there. Let's help them so they can help their neighbors and so their neighbors can help someone else. There are organizations making a lasting difference in the world. One of them is Self-Help International.

It may not be a quick fix, but once those leaves are in the bag -- then we can start the process of rounding up the rest.