Sadly, all is not fair trade in love and war.

Today I declined a piece of Hershey's chocolate, explaining that I do occasionally eat brands that aren't strictly fair trade, but I don't make exceptions for Hershey's. The response? "You know, one person not eating chocolate won't change the world." 


Over three years of pondering the subject of fair trade has indeed led me to the conclusion that I alone will not "change the world" though my choices. Yet, my decisions do result in positive change, however minute. Considering how to respond, I amused myself envisioning the reaction if I were to tell the starfish story. You remember the starfish story: hoards of starfish are strewn across a beach, stranded by a storm. A man is plodding  along the shoreline, bending down periodically to pick up a starfish and throw it back in the water. Inevitably, a naysayer shows up at the scene and is askance! "Why are you wasting your time? You're not going to be able to help all of them. What difference are you making?" The starfish savior patiently throws another creature back in the ocean as he continues: "It made a difference to that one."


Needless to say, I didn't share the starfish story because it has become cliche, and I thought a serious response would be more appropriate than seizing the moment for self-amusement. Essentially, my response was that I do care deeply about affecting change. However, my primary motivation is that we are called to do what is right. I stand before the Lord, not other people's opinions or even my own lofty dreams. In moments when there is no clear, "Thou shalt not" governing an action, I abide by my conscience.


After the conversation ended, I wondered what people would say if I cited dieting as the motivation behind refusing chocolate. Would people find it commendable? If so, why would the personal goal receive more support than the altruistic goal? Speaking of social perception, many of my peers find voting a waste of time, but they are eager to support social justice through commerce. Think of the Tom's Shoes phenomenon, for example. (Not the most efficient way to conduct aid work, by the way.) Middle-aged people seem to think voting is a citizen's duty but are not interested in being part of social movements. I think of every dollar as a vote. Does that make me a young visionary with a middle-aged soul? Well, I do hope to see the day when requesting the fair trade Estima brand at Starbucks is just as natural to people as checking for a blue recycling bin when they finish their Cokes.


These are the topics that occupy my mind as I click through Excel and weave my way down the 101 freeway.

Just One present

Just One fair trade purchase from every American churchgoer this Christmas would lift one million families out of poverty for one whole year. Just One.

spent on Christmas each year in America

people live on less than $1 per day

We get things we need.
They get dignified work.
Your spending makes a real difference.

Give your church a simple, effective way to bring good news to the poor this Christmas. Learn more at Trade as One.

Katie here. I'm a big fan of fair trade because I see it as one excellent solution to fighting the injustices of cyclical poverty, human trafficking, and unfair labor practices. Fair trade products are also generally produced in a way that is environmentally sustainable. Yes, they often cost more than the products we are used to purchasing. Sometimes it is because the company is exploiting the fair trade label, but usually it is because the worker is actually getting paid a fair price. (Makes sense, right?) I recommend the nonprofit above as a great way to get started with fair trade. You can also look for fair trade labels at your local grocery store (especially Trader Joe's and Whole Foods). Leave me a comment and let me know what small changes you are making with your purchases!

Nature did it first.

A growing appreciation of design has introduced terms such as "color story" and "color scheme" into my vocabulary. These terms refer to color combinations intentionally chosen to produce a certain effect on the eye. In design, I enjoy gray as a neutral and think it looks elegant paired with yellow, purple, blue, or even pink. Upon transferring images from my wallpaper file to my external hard drive, I discovered an inadvertent collection of a classic color story...

 

*Unfortunately, I saved these before I began crediting sources, so I only know that the last image is from National Geographic Photo of the Day.

Giving

"Riches should be possessed in a becoming manner and shared generously, 

not mechanically and ostentatiously.”

~Clement of Rome, early church father

Getty Images

 

The Rites of Manhood

The Rites of Manhood

by Alden Nowlan

It's snowing hard enough that the taxis aren't running.

I'm walking home, my night's work finished,

long after midnight with the whole city to myself, 

when across the street I see a very young American sailor

standing over a girl who's kneeling on the sidewalk

and refuses to get up although he's yelling at her

to tell him where she lives so he can take her there

before they both freeze. The pair of them are drunk

and my guess is he picked her up in a bar

and later they got separated from his buddies

and at first it was great fun to play at being

and old salt at liberty in a port full of women with

hinges on their heels, but by now he wants only to

find a solution to the infinitely complex 

problem of what to do about her before he falls into

the hands of the police or the shore patrol

--and what keeps this from being squalid is

what's happening to him inside:

if there were other sailors here

it would be possible for him

to abandon her where she is and joke about it

later, but he's alone and the guilt can't be

divided into small forgettable pieces;

he's finding out what it means

to be a man and how different it is

from the way that only hours ago he imagined it.

________________________________________________________________________
A few years ago, two of my family members claimed it is easier to raise boys than girls. Evidently boys are "less complicated" and "less dramatic." Admittedly unqualified in this area, I am skeptical that boys are truly easier to raise. Rather, I think our standards for men are too low. Producing wise leaders who understand that strength and gentleness can co-exist, respect authority, defend the weak, speak truth, promote purity, work diligently, and esteem the whole personhood of women seems an awfully big challenge to me.