Today’s post I am talking a little bit about a nonprofit organization that a friend of mine is involved with, and something that I think is really meaningful and wanted to share a little more with you all today!
Care for Life Africa is a non profit organization in Mozambique Africa. They work together as an organization to provide the people in that community with the education that they need to thrive. My friend spent this summer working in Mozambique with the families and children there, and when she came back she shared a little bit of her story:
“In 2003 I went to Mozambique for the first time and the poverty was blatant. A child wore the same shirt the entire time I was there, a month. Men would come home from a long day of work in the fields, with no shoes. Women cooked rice for their one meal of the day. All I wanted to do was give them my clothes and buy them a sandwhich. The problem with giving things, is that eventually they will need more things.
Care for Life is a unique charity that doesn’t give things. What happens to the local shoe maker when a charity comes in and hands out free shoes? Or the farmer’s when we come and give away free food? There is a time and a place for emergency items when death is imminent if needs aren’t met, but giving these items on a consistent basis only creates a nation of dependency and more poverty.
Education is the key to ending poverty. I don’t mean everyone needs a college degree, but more basic skills that have been lost. Things like, building a latrine so you don’t drink and bathe and go to the bathroom in the same stream. Harvesting a garden for a lifetime supply of food. How to save money and earn interest. How to treat water so you don’t get sick. What to do when you’re sick. Staying faithful to your wife so you don’t spread disease. These are things that seem obvious when you live in a first world country but in remote areas in Africa, these things are not so common.
Care for Life has been around now for almost 20 years and has evolved into a life saving charity with staggering results. It is a holistic approach to ending poverty that encompasses everything one might need to survive and thrive in Mozambique.
Spending so much time in Mozambique has taught me so much about life. Here are some life lessons I brought home from Africa
*Be happy with what you have.
*Things don’t make you happy
*Bring your flawed self and be loved, no matter who that is
*Feeling beautiful doesn’t come from having a mirror
*Children are capable of a lot
*Mundane chores can bring inner peace”
-Catherine Johnson
These earrings were a gift Mozambique. One of the people there make earrings to sell, and I think they are so beautiful and I love wearing them because they remind me of a greater cause, and that somewhere in the world, we are needed and our efforts to help others is important. I have also linked below the link if you want to donate to this cause. It’s important for me to always make sure I am finding ways as an influencer to contribute to the causes that matter most. My day to day life as a blogger is fun and exciting, but sometimes I get a chance to donate to something bigger and more valuable, and it is so important for me to share that.
XX, MYKEL ELIZABETH
