A Cry for Help
It is 6:21am EST. Husband, Toddler, and I have been up all night. No, not partying. Vomiting. All three of us. Sorry for the lovely visual. Yes, it seems that another vicious wave of illness has washed over our family's shore. Currently, Husband, the latest vomit victim, is curled up on the couch fast asleep. Toddler sits at his feet watching Sponge Bob, waiting for it to end so she can savor her rationed three sips of water. Baby is still asleep in her crib. We will wait and see how she fares.
And I sit here. Barely on the other side, squinting into a bright screen in a dark room.
I wasn't going to blog today. Frankly, I feel like I've been hit by a truck. Frankly, the last several days of my life have been rotten and I am spent. Frankly, when there are natural disasters of epic proportions transpiring in our world, it seems kind of frivolous to spin silly words and whine about lost phones and allergic reactions and vomit.
But then. After fetching Toddler her latest bit of water between cartoons, I opened Laptop. I heard that friendly tweet. An itty-bitty cry for my attention. And, it turns out, my help.
Danielle LaPorte and Kelly Diels wrote me (and presumably many others) tweets imploring me to participate in Kelly's Help Haiti Blog Challenge. On her site yesterday, Kelly wrote a wonderful post and encouraged all of us bloggers to help with the efforts in any way we can. For those of us who offer products or services, she suggested we sell those and donate the funds to certain charities.
Brilliant.
But I don't sell things. (Yet.) Or offer services. No.
I tell stories and ask questions. I weave words. I wax silly and serious. That's what I do.
So, I gave it a little thought. And this is what I will do: I will donate two dollars to the Red Cross for every single comment left on this post between now and 6:21am EST on Monday January, 18th, 2010. I know that some of you are usually not inclined to comment. But please make an exception just this once. I would love to hear about any of the following:
- How you are able to go about your day-to-day when there are massive world crises unfolding
- What you tell curious children about these disasters
- Whether you tend to seek out every devastating detail about these events, or avoid them
- Whether your family has been sick a lot too this season
- Anything.
- If you are busy or overwhelmed, just type two worlds. Help Haiti. Two words for two dollars? Not bad.
If you are a blogger (and even if you aren't), please click over to Kelly's site to read details about how you too can join in this important endeavor.
Okay, Yo Gabba Gabba is over. I have some water to grab for a certain ashen Toddler. Baby is calling for me. It is high time to curl up on a comfy couch with my ailing family, relish the good fortune of smaller problems, and wait for your words - and help - to pour in.
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Again, please leave a comment here in the next seventy-two-ish hours to help Haiti. Each reader can leave up to one comment per day, or a maximum of three comments before Monday's deadline. I will pop into the comment box at least once per day to announce how much money has been raised and reveal the total amount on Monday. Thank you.
