Some may wonder why Walk For Water is so important to me. I'm sure there are people that assume it's because I feel so blessed to live in the U.S. I do not have to walk far for my water. There are so many who do walk, and they walk far. The walk is usually not on a nice paved road. It is not a lovely stroll in nice weather. It is HOT. It is FAR. It is for dirty water. They drink it, they cook with it, and they bathe in it. In our video we talk a lot about the fact that they drink this very contaminated water. We know the fact that 86% of all diseases come from consuming this dirty water, but what about the other things that are done with it? Can clothes ever really be clean when they're washed in brown water? Do the parasites live on the clothes? Do the parasites rub against the skin all day as people work and children attend school? How about the fact that people cook with it, and wash their dishes with it?!
Last year, I was talking with my two year old daughter. I was telling her all of the things that I love about her. I told her I loved that she had a kind heart. I said that I loved that she liked to play with her sister. I said I loved that she had a beautiful smile. I told her I loved that she was my daughter... The list went on. Finally, I asked her what her favorite thing was about Mommy - expecting her answer to mimic along the lines of, " I love you because you are Mommy." Since she was only two at the time, I expected her answer to be a similar repeat of my declarations. What I didn't expect were the words that came out of her mouth. With her eyes wide open staring into mine, she said, " I love you because when we were in Ghana, and I had sores all over me, you put medicine on them and made them feel better." I was moved beyond words, and all I could do was cry and tell her I loved her. The day our youngest child joined our family, she was almost two and weighed only fifteen pounds. She wore size 3-6 months clothes and was covered in sores. These sores were caused from the unclean water people used to bath her in at her orphanage. We lived in Ghana for three months. Her sores did not completely go away until we returned home. A few people in our family also broke out in sores, but we had brought strong medicines from the U.S. in case we caught something or became ill. Our youngest had the source of these sores in her blood stream, so it took a long time for her to completely heal. Until she did, I put medicine on her twice a day until all the sores were gone.
This walk was started in the hearts of my kids as they wanted to help others. It has since become my passion. A side effect of this dirty water is the reason my daughter grew to love me. If I can walk for all the children who have sores from their dirty water, I will. If I can walk for the children who do not have a mother to put medicine on them, I will. If I can walk for those who cannot change their own situation, then I will. Someday my daughter will ask me, "What did we do for those I left behind?". I want to be able to tell her that I walked so people in her birth country didn't have to go thirsty or experience sores and sickness. Will you join us this August 16th and Walk For Water, so you can tell others that you did something too? www.walkforwater2014.eventbrite.com
Last year, I was talking with my two year old daughter. I was telling her all of the things that I love about her. I told her I loved that she had a kind heart. I said that I loved that she liked to play with her sister. I said I loved that she had a beautiful smile. I told her I loved that she was my daughter... The list went on. Finally, I asked her what her favorite thing was about Mommy - expecting her answer to mimic along the lines of, " I love you because you are Mommy." Since she was only two at the time, I expected her answer to be a similar repeat of my declarations. What I didn't expect were the words that came out of her mouth. With her eyes wide open staring into mine, she said, " I love you because when we were in Ghana, and I had sores all over me, you put medicine on them and made them feel better." I was moved beyond words, and all I could do was cry and tell her I loved her. The day our youngest child joined our family, she was almost two and weighed only fifteen pounds. She wore size 3-6 months clothes and was covered in sores. These sores were caused from the unclean water people used to bath her in at her orphanage. We lived in Ghana for three months. Her sores did not completely go away until we returned home. A few people in our family also broke out in sores, but we had brought strong medicines from the U.S. in case we caught something or became ill. Our youngest had the source of these sores in her blood stream, so it took a long time for her to completely heal. Until she did, I put medicine on her twice a day until all the sores were gone.
This walk was started in the hearts of my kids as they wanted to help others. It has since become my passion. A side effect of this dirty water is the reason my daughter grew to love me. If I can walk for all the children who have sores from their dirty water, I will. If I can walk for the children who do not have a mother to put medicine on them, I will. If I can walk for those who cannot change their own situation, then I will. Someday my daughter will ask me, "What did we do for those I left behind?". I want to be able to tell her that I walked so people in her birth country didn't have to go thirsty or experience sores and sickness. Will you join us this August 16th and Walk For Water, so you can tell others that you did something too? www.walkforwater2014.eventbrite.com