We are Setting Out A Special Bowl…To Remember

This time of the year gets really crazy, our todo list triple in size, we are preparing for the holidays, shopping, and often times doing more with less time. We hear stories about the craziness in stores as people try to catch the best deal. You may even wonder how you are going to get it all done. Even cooking for the holiday can be overwhelming as we think about all of the choices, what people want to have and refrigerators full of options and choices.

When you are facing those kinds of choices, it is easy to lose focus on what is important. The people around your table, they people in your community, and the people around the world. During this time of the year, I love to put little visual reminders around that help me remember and bring things back into right focus. A quick reminder that things are not as bad as they can sometimes seem to be, and we have the ability to change things around and treasure the great things in front of me.

This year, that visual reminder, is a beautiful bowl from a place that I don’t talk about a lot and don’t hear much about on a daily basis, but it is still a place where there are plenty of stories. I don’t know about you, but I can still recall the heart wrenching stories about the conditions in Rwanda in what seems like just yesterday. One of my school friend shared as she narrowly escaped death in Africa many, many years ago. We prayed for her safety and hoped that she would find her way in the arms of friends and family here in the states, and today I am thankful that she did.

Although she is safe, and her story ended well, many others from war torn countries in Africa didn’t get out. Tons of people died in the Congo, and in Rwanda. Others made it to safety to other places, but they paid a great price for their lives….but never left the area and now are trying to rebuild.

As a mom those images and stories never leave me, I can imagine the children, the parents who had to make hard choices when it came to survival and everyone else. It is not enough for me to remember those travesties, I have to find a real way to be more involved in the solution. Although I never made a trip to Africa, and may not be able to touch those families and gives them hugs, I know I can do something.

So this Holiday season I have placed a very special bowl on our table. It is a beautiful, is even red and white. The bowl is a beautifully woven piece of art, and it is even numbered, but that is not what makes it so important. Whenever we look at it, we can remember the lives that will forever be changed, and those who we can still help, even now with our money, our time, and our efforts.

If you want to help the people of Rwanda you can do so by supporting this work, and purchasing a basket. These baskets are a wonderful reminder of determination, and a beautiful example of what can happen when people work together to help others. These bowls are handcrafted by Rwandan women, and the fruit basket combines red and white to represent Rwanda’s tragic past and bright future. You can support this effort, and get your own right here… http://www1.macys.com/shop/product/rwanda-basket-12-new-spirit-fruit-bowl?ID=479036&CategoryID=55973#fn=sp%3D1%26spc%3D15%26kws%3Drwanda%20bowls%26slotId%3D2

 

This story, and the opinions are all mine, but the opportunity to share it with you, and the bowl was received by our wonderful friends at Everywhere.