Oh Disparity and Choices

I saw it coming but didn’t. I’ve been ‘home’ (amurica) for over a week and have a million things to write about without the ability to do so. I can’t compute the vast differences from such rawness to processed life. I think it comes down to choices. It’s the choices that have really set things apart. For a year, the choices were slim, you go to a restaurant and have 2 choices, you ask for one and they don’t have it so you have to get the other. Your options on things to do are quite limited. This is quite a contrast to life in America. The choices have been overwhelming. From 20 different types of cheeses at the grocery store to restaurants having menus and actually serving the things on them. This is all quite a contrast for me. But I am only speaking for myself right now, not the 4+ million living on $0.50 a day in Rwanda.

It’s their choices or lack thereof that I can’t get out of my head. Yeah my choices might have been slim but for millions around the world their choices are impossible. Rwanda has done a decent job of trying to provide affordable healthcare and good education for many but for those in crippling poverty, choices still have to be made. Choices like buying clean water for the family one day OR paying for a child who is sick to go to the hospital. Saving up for 2-3 weeks to buy a bed net to try to reduce the chances of a kid getting malaria or spending a few extra francs at the market to try give the kids some fruit or vegetable to diversify their strictly cornmeal diet. Trying to reduce hospital visits is hard and expensive. When kids grow the added expense of school fees and the loss of a family member to help fetch water or help on the family plot is hard. Life can unimaginably tough.

There is a lot of hope though. Many of these families work very hard and care deeply about their families and children and if given the chance, they can greatly improve the situation their family is in. Non-profits and governments are trying to invest more and more in micro-finance and micro-savings programs to help people not have to make such hard decisions. Nobody should have to decide between clean water or a sick child, school fees or a squandered future. The inequity is large in our world of 20 different cheeses but a lot can be done and the potential is huge.