from the desk of tara hope…

i want to help. i see needs and i want to meet them. there are so many hurting these days and i know i cant help everyone but i want to. i feel so blessed, and i want to share what i have but i realize its unrealistic to be able to do something for everyone who needs a hand. i cant adopt every dog or starving baby, and i cant keep all the homeless warm enough on cold nights and i cant stop every girl from feeling unloved.

i feel like we as americans get called greedy, selfish, and arrogant. but then when we attempt to go and help the poor people of the world we get blasted for being patronizing. so which is it? how do we truly help? we have so many resources, and there are so many with so little, surely we can do something, anything? but what is the most needed and whats the best way to go about it?

there are all these conflicting messages for christians. the bible says to go ye into all the world and preach the gospel. it also says to care for widows and orphans. so i assume thats what we should be doing. but then there are christians who say that we dont really need to go ourselves, we can just send money. and then there are christians who say going on short term missions trips dont help anything, they are a farce. sometimes i dont know what to think. are we supposed to help? are we supposed to go? are we supposed to sit in our comfy homes and write checks without ever needing to touch the hurting ourselves? are we supposed to sell all our possessions and give everything we own to the poor?

do i really think short term volunteer work ever truly helps with the big picture (ie helping at the soup kitchen on thanksgiving day)? no, i dont. i think that people that just come in to help once a year arent really helping much at all. maybe they aleviate some workload stress for the day, but i think alot of times they cause more trouble than they’re worth. i think to truly help on a volunteer basis you have to do it consistently and actually get involved for long haul.

BUT do i think that you can help someone you have only met with for a few minutes, hours or days? yes. because i believe that a smile and a friendly conversation really can make someones day better. i truly think words can heal or hurt and i think that loving on people is NEVER a worthless investment. do i think that loving on people in haiti is any more important than loving on people in raleigh? no. do i think its worth going all the way to mexico just to love on people? yes. i truly believe every life is precious and people should be told that as much as possible. especially hurting people. and as far as i can tell, most everyone on the planet is hurting. so if i get a chance to go to another country and make new friends and let them know someone cares about them, then i am going to. just like i care for the girls at Mercy or the homeless on my street in NYC. i may not know them. i may not be able to do a single thing to help make their life better. they might not think their life needs to be better. but i care about them. i know that their life has worth and value. and i want them to know it, too. just like i want my friends to know it and the kids i teach dance to and the lady who checks me out at the grocery store.

i dont have any answers for most of life’s big questions. and i dont pretend to. my mind works logically but i also tend to be easily swayed by my emotions, so sometimes my logic is flawed. all i know is that i have to do what i can do. and if thats sending money, great. if thats going and getting my hands dirty, great. if i have an opportunity to help, i am going to. if i see a homeless guy begging and i have an extra dollar or bottle of water or a granola bar, i will give it to him. if i see a lost animal i will love it and pet it and help it find a home. and if i see a hurting human i will look them in the eye and offer a kind word and let them know that they are seen and that their life matters. they matter. you matter. even i matter…as much as i dont want to believe that sometimes.

i am choosing to make this year the year of showing people they are valued. and i am choosing to say yes to new opportunities to make that happen. if its letting the pregnant lady with kids cut me in line, or organizing events to raise money, or going to faraway lands to hand out whatever needs to be handed out, i say yes. because honestly, thats the only thing i can do. i know it wont help many people, my saying yes. but if it just helps one person, its worth it. it’s always worth it.

any thoughts on this subject, dear readers?