The Smallest of Gestures Can Make The Biggest of Differences...

The Buddha once said (in another language) "Have compassion for all beings, rich and poor alike; each has their suffering. Some suffer too much, others too little.". Anyone who follows the goings on in the Caribbean, as those of us in South Florida tend to, knows that over the years the people of Haiti have suffered greatly... And those of us who live in Miami are no strangers to Haitian culture, and most of us know at least a few Haitian people in our personal lives. I have always been endeared to the Haitians... They are among the hardest working, polite, cheerful, and pleasant people to know. In spite of being the poorest nation in the western hemisphere, in spite of being abused not only by foreign powers but by their own elected leaders, in spite of having to leave their homeland to staff the hotels and kitchens in Miami, they retain a pride in their culture, cuisine, language, and values. I highly respect that, and in my experiences and time among the Haitian community, I have been humbled by them.

Yesterday, Haiti suffered a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. Not living in an earthquake area, I have to count on the experiences of others who tell me this is, though not catastrophic, pretty damned bad. In fact, two days earlier northern California experienced a 6.5 magnitude quake... .5 of a magnitude in difference right? Only on the scale... But if you stop to look at the result, you wouldn't just need to construct a new scale, you'd have to construct a new system.

The tragedy of the Haitian earthquake is in the already crumbling infrastructure of the island... For decades, Haiti has been in a state of perpetual decomposition, falling apart at the seams as it were... And although western powers and aid agencies have tried to do something to help, the help has always come short of what is needed. This is not at all a critique of any aid, after all, it isn't mandatory to help anyone else, and even if the help is minimal, even if it's ten dollars, it's ten more dollars than they had before... This, is the entire point of this message.

According to early estimates, sources within the country are placing casualties anywhere between 100,000-500,000 people... Insiders have reported piles of corpses pulled from rubble, cities (even the capital) leveled, in ruins... It is for that very reason that I, although I am not Haitian, or have Haitian family, have decided that this cause deserves my attention, and by virtue of mine, yours, my humble readers.

I stopped to think this morning about what it would be like to suffer this sort of tragedy, and all my imagination fell short... I was in Miami during Hurricane Andrew, and remember driving through Homestead... it looked like those pictures you saw in school of the Hiroshima bomb... You could see four blocks down from any spot, because every house was a pile of rubble... There were no street signs left, there were no street lights left, and if it weren't anchored to the earth itself I am certain there wouldn't have been any streets left. Even then, even with all of that destruction the casualties were minimal, because in America our cities are well built (even if the houses weren't up to code) and our hospitals are well staffed.

Although we are hundreds of miles away, Haiti is our neighbor. And no matter what faith, ethos, party, or philosophy you subscribe to, pretty much all of them extol the virtues of helping your neighbor. Our neighbor needs our help right now, and I am here to tell you how you can!

The easiest thing one can do, which would still be of immense help, would be to donate $10 to the Red Cross VIA text message! It's very simple, all you need to do is text HAITI to 90999. You will then receive a follow-up txt asking you to confirm your $10 red cross donation by responding YES to the text message. With that, $10 will be added to next month's phone bill for your donation. Quick and instant!

If you wish to give more, there are several organizations taking donations to aid Haiti... Wycleff Jean's foundation is collecting, and you can go to their website at http://www.yele.org you can also give money VIA UNICEF's collection at: http://www.unicefusa.org/news/releases/unicef-urgently-appeals-for.html. However you choose to help, I hope sincerely that you will... At the end of the day, we are all each other's keeper. And if we cannot count on one another, regardless of race, creed, or nationality, then what good is our "humanity"?

Personally I gave my ten dollars VIA text this morning, and am going to give more VIA website now... because the more I think about it, the more blessed I feel for everything I have in my life and the more I want to help those who need it so much more than myself... The fact is, the cost of a movie ticket, or 2 lattes at Starbucks might save lives... When you compare those things, is there even a comparison to be made? I don't think so.