We get home, and go about our day and a couple of days later I remember I bought these nifty bath things for $1 each and it would be fun for them to do in the bath. (Paul was doing something downstairs so I was in charge of bath time. For some reason this is the most boring part of my day. I digress). Anyway, we quickly learn that the body wash crayons are clear body wash, not colored, and they get bored with them. But the bath paints were a huge hit. They used all five in a matter a minutes. The girls are giggling while they paint everything around them.
I remember sitting there thinking that I would like these $1 paints to last longer than this one bath, but then I thought to myself...what does it matter? They were just a $1.
Suddenly, I felt this tremendous weight on my conscious as I thought about that $1. That day I had spent $3 on bath things for my girls. I didn't think about that money when I spent it. I just thought "Oh, this will be fun for them, and it's only $1". But as I sat there as they played I began thinking about the 2.2 BILLION people that live on less than $2 a day. I had spent $3 on bath toys that my girls didn't like or used up in less than five minutes when there are 2.2 BILLION people* who don't even have that for food or clean water.
I became an Ambassador for Noonday Collection a little over a year ago. I decided to be part of this company so I could create a marketplace here among my friends for artisans across this world to be able to live on more than $2 a day. For those artisans to be able to have access to food, clean water and medical care that I often taken for granted.
I have worked hard to try and spend my money as as wisely as I can when it comes to where I purchase from so that I know that what I am buying is being ethically made. These things have become important to me after meeting Jalia, hearing her story, and realizing that she came from NOTHING and each purchase that I make wisely has helped her create a pathway out of poverty for her and the other artisans in her group.
But I sat there the other day throwing away money on things that my girls can survive without, and I didn't even think twice about it before I spent it. I very easily could have said "I would like to spend this $3 on bath stuff, but instead I will talk to my girls about those living in poverty and we can save it to support a child through Compassion International or put it towards our adoption fund." I could have taken that moment and made it a teachable moment for my girls. (Can I just say that my girls didn't even ask for these things...this was something I did.)
I know that I live in America and things are more expensive here than in many other places, but I also strongly feel like I should think about where I spend my money and what I spend it on.
Because for some people that $1 could change their lives.
*information from http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/overview
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