Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Haiti

It seems there was an earthquake that/ Left nothin' but a Panama hat/ And a pair of old Greek shoes./ Didn't seem like much was happenin',/ So I turned it off and went to grab another beer./ Seems like every time you turn around/ There's another hard-luck story that you're gonna hear/ And there's really nothin' anyone can say/ And I never did plan to go anyway/ To Black Diamond Bay.

Determined to put something in about Haiti. Plus, it means something to me. Some years ago, as a reply to my plea to help in another disaster, a friend played this song. I have to say, it was a unique way of saying no & he received style points (from me) for it.

Whether you were planning to go or not. Let's not turn our backs. Like my former friend.

There are postings everywhere with suggestions for donations. I made mine to the Red Cross & World Vision. There are links on Giulia Geranium (or scads of other places). Plus every country has their Red Cross chapter. Upate: I see that Wyclef Jean's Yéle Haiti Foundation has its donation site up, now. He donates 100% to relief, too.

Another update on Thursday: Received this wonderful message just now in a Red Cross e-card:

Ciao Susanna and Giulia,
I was inspired by your posting and have made a donation for the relief effort. I look forward to seeing you on Sunday!
xoxo


[photograph of Haitian bird in a cage by John Leonard/LIFE archives]

5 comments:

Kat Mortensen said...

I will be posting something in my Theme Thursday post later this evening. It is horrific, isn't it? Such a magnitude as well.

Mary-Laure said...

Thanks for the links, I'll look them up.
This is really so terrible. I saw some pictures of children, on the website of the NYTimes, that left me teary-eyed. You know, those huge hungry eyes, filled with devastation and fear. Sigh.

Julie@beingRUBY said...

Hi Susan
It is incredibly sad.. was watching it on the news this morning... It is hard to comprehend such devastation.

Tina Tarnoff said...

I'm absolutely heartbroken. It's just so devastating. I keep thinking of those people still traped. Crying for someone to help them. Take care, you two cats.

Susan said...

Hi everyone. Thanks for your comments. There is hope...that's the only way to think of it in this kind of situation. The real rebuilding (after things settle down) has got to be the focus. And that was happening thru Bill Clinton's foundation (among others) when the quake struck. More soon. I really like what Wyclef Jean is doing...it's important that Haitians are included as real stakeholders in the country. Blah blah who cares what I think?:)