This is article was written by Cara in support of Blog Action Day 2008

Ok, so i admit it. This whole economy thing is really freaking me out. I worry if I have enough money and what might happen to me. I am not bad off or anything, but I always look around at other Americans and think I am pretty poor – or at least – definitely NOT rich. However, today I just found out something incredible. I am – literally – one of the richest people in the whole world…. and so are you.

First of all, go to this website, pick US dollars, and type in your yearly salary and it will tell you on the far right how rich you are compared to the rest of the world. It’s crazy!

Ok, if that didn’t quite make sense, check out this 1 minute video. It explains the whole thing with a visual. Don’t worry, its just an interesting animation. There are no scary or sad pictures, which I know some of you have a hard time with. I promise.

For me, this really puts things in perspective. And I usually kind of hesitate to give money to the needy, because I am not that rich myself, right? But actually since I just found out that I am one of the richest in the world, I guess it’s up to me to share. Its pretty convicting, but also amazing.

So, for the rest of you, fellow richest people in the world, I challenge you today to give with me to those who really need us. Give anywhere you want, but here is an option if you need one. Scroll down to the right to find all the different one-time needs.

Other Interesting Statistics:
-1 out of every 2 people – HALF – live on less than $2.50 per day.
-1 out of every 4 people – don’t have electricity
-The amount of money it would take to provide food, water, health, and education for those who dont have it is the SAME amount of money spent on cigarettes in Europe alone.

- This video shows the children of Cameroon as they play with a frisbee, bubbles and look into a digital camera…many for the first time.

Dear Melissa,

Tonight we found out how nature has provided free popcorn for all the kids at the movie showing. you see, not only do the only lights for miles draw hundreds of people, it draws every bug in a 100 mile radius to the lights on the screen. Yesterday was the first rain of the season, so that apparently brings out huge swarms of flying termites. They are as big as giant grasshoppers and have wings. 1^st we just saw a few flying around the lights. Then more & more, so much that they formed a thick cloud that actually kept people from seeing the whole screen. We had no idea what was happening, but the word “plague” did enter our minds. The kids were going crazy & chattering when the wave of termites would edge towards them. I thought they were afraid of them. Clearly I was wrong. After about 30 minutes, the termites began to lose their wings & dropped to the ground. Children began scooping them up in handfuls as fast as they all could, & before I knew it they were popping them into their mouths as they watched the show. Of course, termites aren’t the only live creatures that come to the shows. We have had a loose pig, wild dogs, & several rats – which the leaders promptly hunted down & killed. Also, wherever there are termites, there are frogs hopping everywhere, enjoying the feast.

(This is the welcome that Cara and her team often got when they arrived in a village in Cameroon).

Dear Melissa,

We are really here. I was hoping to get to see a few huts if we were lucky, but they are everywhere. Everyone here lives in a little subdivision or suburb made of connecting huts with adobe walls surrounding them all into little clusters, containing a courtyard, storage hut, huts for different family members & sometimes a place for the livestock. The people here are not as poor as I suspected. They are certainly not rich, but they have cattle, goats & pigs & crops in their fields. Many women are regaled in the brightly covered fabric that shows that they are well off in their community – (comparatively, of course). I don’t imagine that the people here often if ever eat 3 meals a day, they have no furniture, running water or belongings & there are many children wearing old adult clothing that is covered in dust & holes. I also see that many homes are using old burlap sacks that once contained government issued millet to help supplement their diets. They seem to be making do but I am sure there could be many days where food is scarce.

Dear Melissa,

I can’t explain why – maybe it’s because it’s Africa & there are no spare parts, & no Best Buys around the corner, but every film showing comes extremely close to never happening. I remember this from when I spent 3 months in Kenya doing this also. So tonight, our group lost an adapter so that the generator was African voltage & the projector was American voltage – so they didn’t connect. Finally one of the Cameroon team members cut the chord in half, stripped it & rewired it. Someone forgot the stakes to stake the screen into the ground so we found some government building to show the film on. Then, there was no audio chord to the speakers, so we had to take turns holding the mic next to the computer audio for the whole movie. Then they realized they had forgotten the gas for the generator, so a kindly African volunteer hopped on his moped to go find some. His motorcycle broke down on the way, so some other volunteer took over from there, while he got help. Eventually, & miraculously, with lots of prayer, it almost always seems to work out. Really I think it is because these African people just never give up no matter how long it takes. They believe there is a solution & they don’t quit until they find it. Also, it shows how important this film showing is to them. When they asked our Cameroon leader what we were going to do after he had cut and stripped that chord in case we needed it tomorrow, he said “But we need to deal with today.” Then he quoted us this scripture “Don’t worry about tomorrow for today has enough troubles of its own.” (Matthew 6:34)

This is a link to the Website for the hospital where Cara went to help out one of her team members who was sick. The people who run the hospital are from the U.S. and have been there for 17 years helping the people of Cameroon get medical aid. If you want to donate to the hospital, you can do so here. http://www.guidestar.org/pqShowGsReport.do?partner=justgive&npoId=584178

(Leah, who is from Lousiana helps run the hospital where Cara spent the night.)

(as an aside, when Cara showed me this video, she said “I know I look horrible in this video, but that was the least of my worries!”)