Here's an embarrassing confession: When I did a big home-office cleanup recently, one of the things I found, buried in piles of paper, was a stuffed UNICEF box from a couple Halloweens ago. I was never in danger of mistaking the money for my own. But UNICEF could have put it to good use long ago.
Weeks after I found it, though, the box was still sitting around, because I kept forgetting to have my daughter count the money. But the earthquake in Haiti gave me a sense of urgency. I had her count the cash a couple days ago, and I've donated the sum online, plus a bit extra. A little bit of help for Haiti. And one more undone task off my shoulders.
When the earthquake first hit, I wanted to donate something myself right away. People were e-mailing and tweeting and sharing on Facebook the names of effective charities working in Haiti. But it was a lot of names, and I was in danger either of spending way too much time researching who to give my small donation to or of procrastinating and not doing a thing.
A phrase I'd learned years ago from my ex helped me: Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. When my Facebook buddy Barack Obama suggested texting HAITI to 90999 to donate $10 to the Red Cross, I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and did it right then. Easy. Not the perfect, fully researched decision, but a good thing to do. And it's one less undone task to add to my burden.
In case you've procrastinated, it's not too late. After the emergency relief effort, Haiti will still need help rebuilding. Here's a list of organizations responding to the disaster in Haiti, assembled by NPR.
Hi Kathleen,
I know what you mean about all the Haitian appeals being overwhelming - I did exactly the same as you. Heard a report on NPR today about how new media like twitter and texting are changing the way we donate.
Like your ex's phrase - will remember that one.
Posted by: Mandy | January 26, 2010 at 08:27 PM