Sponsoring DoDo

So one of my relatives asked me if I had considered setting up an education fund for DoDo after I had written about how I fear for her education. I had not at the time, and after thinking a good while on it I have decided firmly against it and I want to explain why.

It started as a gut reaction from my male instincts which compel me to be a good provider for my family. That is not to say the women I settle down with can’t work or needs to make less than me, but simply that the end of the day I need to be able to provide for me family. [hopefully Josephine, another EWB volunteer who is a strong feminist will not come after me for saying that – they are instincts Joe! I can’t help ‘em!]. So, putting my place in Katalausha’s shoes, if I was told that some Canadian chap wanted to pay for my daughters education I would be a bit insulted. It’s the whole, I am a Canadian and have more money than you so I will pay for your daughters education, thing. I would be suggested that he couldn’t support his own family. Though he might be grateful, I at least would be insulted.

Now I am now out rightly criticizing the sponsoring of children. With the HIV pandemic, it has been said the Zambia is a nation of orphans. There are heaps of child-headed households. Any education makes all the difference in the world. There are children who have absolutely nothing and it’s not because anything except where they happened to be born. The only thing that separates you and your privilege to any one of those orphans is a fluke of birth. There is another thing to truly meditate on.

Anyway, I intend to keep in touch with this family I have grown to love so much like my own family [which means all my relatives reading this now has vicarious Zambian relatives]. I intend to learn more about the economic situation because I don’t understand it right now [how do you ask someone if they are poor?]. If I learn of difficulties such as problems paying for education, I will ask the family what I can do to help them. And we will figure something out.