Having my baby, the Pea, I am acutely aware that my purchases for her will define her own relationship with material possessions. I want her to have an edited array of gorgeous things that she can treasure, not a pile of plastic toys each birthday and Christmas. I want to give her experiences, create rituals, play together as we find the joy in each and every day. I want her to be as aware as some of the very young children I know, who choose to make a donation on their birthdays to help other children rather than have yet another toy.
As such, one of the ways I have celebrated her birth (and marked my own passage through labour) is by donating to the Birthing Kit Foundation Australia. At the cost of around $3 per kit, they provide the essentials for a mother to birth her child more safely. With an estimated 385,000 women dying from complications in childhood anually, I can't bear to birth my beautiful daughter without helping someone else to birth their child more safely.
If this strikes a chord with you as it did with me, please pass the link on to friends and family. Here's to all the mothers and babies of the world.
Great to hear your passion for creating rituals. With that in mind, Gigli can you help me find a reliable supplier of religious gongs, ritual masks, book of chants and good quality daggers?
ReplyDeleteDear Blotts, I fear you may be on the wrong blog for those items. Perhaps you might find what you are looking for on www.http//mybrotherisanidiot.com .
DeleteBest of luck and thanks for writing!
Hi Jo, interesting you posted about the women dying in birth now, cause I am reading this book (http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report_review-half-the-sky-how-to-change-the-world-women-in-our-world_1507039) and it talks about it as well as other issues related to violence against women. Worth reading.
ReplyDeleteI loved your post. I will check the website out! BTW I totally agree with your thoughts about "disposable toys". :) Angela
Thanks for the link, Angela! I am reading this article as I write. It is always devastating to hear of the violence against women that is still considered lawful, or certainly culturally acceptable, in various countries. It's one of the reasons I am also a fan of donating through microloans; changing communities from the inside out, often by supporting women's small businesses.
Delete