Radical Change, Ordinary Individuals

I fashion myself a progressive. I like to see myself as thinking of others but I rarely buy food for beggars I pass on the street. I see the problems with consumerism but I have a PDA. I take the train—not the bus—when I travel to and from DC. I think about freedom in Christ but I've got a savings account, a 9-5 job, health insurance, and family who would be a safety net should I ever need it. The truth of the matter is, I'm human and that's OK. Nay, it is good.

There is cause for celebration in the little victories. Last night, I needed to stop by a friend's after work to pick up some belongings that I was storing at his place. I'd just finished a hearty birthday dinner with Micah and Casey and my things were in a strapless bag and a bit heavy. With post-eating lethargy setting in, the thought of walking a few blocks, making a subway transfer, and walking a few more blocks all the while totting my clunker of a bag was not appealing. “It's my birthday, I'm hailing a cab.” I probably could have, it is my birthday and I would have recognized it as an indulgence and not something I should come to expect. Surely I don't take cabs everywhere. I don't believe that the subway is beneath me. I could get away with this expense.

I live in comfort, I can afford everything I need and most things I want. And I've taken my share of cabs. The truth of the matter, the walk would be quick, the subway would be air conditioned, and the trip would be almost as fast. As I walked with my bag slung over my shoulder, I thought about children who must carry similarly heavy containers full of water every day. Of men and women who must endure the humidity without relief of air condition. Whose travels are always by foot and never involved sitting on a subway. I decided to take the $15 I would have spent on a cab and invest it through micro-lending.

Sure, I will take a cab at some point soon. I'm sipping on cold tap water as I compose this entry on my laptop computer. Tomorrow I'll wake up and go to job in entertainment. But today, right now, I am realizing just how much privilege I have, how much I take it for granted, and how easy it makes my life. And it makes that $15 investment a no-brainer. Sometimes radical changes come through ordinary individuals. Will you invest with me?