Wasted

I just finished helping my husband load our van full for a trip to the dump.  In the past, our trips to the dump have mostly included dry wall, old metal....stuff from our remodel.  Today, our dump run includes all the left-overs from our adoption yard sale a couple weeks back.  I was on the verge of tears as I was loading in computers, carseats, tupperware, curtain rods and much much more.  I just looked at my husband with eyes welling up with tears and said, "I wish we could just ship it all to Africa."  "I know sweetie," he responded, "but one step at a time, okay?"

Does it every just HIT you how WASTEFUL we are as Americans?  We throw away things of perfectly good use simply because...well, we are using it!  How did we end up so spoiled? 

Its not like we didn't try to get rid of it in other ways either.  I mean we had a YARD SALE, and then we tried donating to Good Will....although they took most stuff, there are certain things they won't accept (carseats - they can't be sure they haven't been in any accidents, computers - have no way to verify they work, and they simply have no room for big items right now).  I wish there was an easy answer...

I think maybe it hit me extra hard because I have just been informed about the dump in Addis Ababa (where Hannah's Hope, our agency's orphanage is...Addis Ababa, not the dump).  A while back, the government sent everyone with leprosy to live in Korah (meaning "cursed") - the dump.  It is completely unbelievable to think that families are surviving by digging through others' garbage!  That they live in the midst of this filth!  Although it was a heart-breaking post to read...it was a real eye opener, and I would totally encourage everyone to check it out HERE if you haven't done so already.

I wish I had an answer.  A solution.  The fact of the matter is, we live in a sinful world.  The poor, homeless, diseased, "cursed", and unwanted....that is the result of sin.  And it is breaking my heart.


Ordinary Hero~ A day in the trash dump in Ethiopia from Kelly Putty on Vimeo.