The Power of One... The Starfish Story

I have always loved the The Starfish Story... you will remember it once you start reading...

The Starfish Story

Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work. One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out "Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?"

The young man paused, looked up, and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean."

"I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?" asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die."

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, "But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can't possibly make a difference!"

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, "I made a difference to that one!"

adapted from The Star Thrower

by Loren Eiseley 1907 - 1977

When we become throwers of the starfish, we too, have the power to change the world… one starfish at a time. Thank you to all of the starfish throwers out there... your contributions to Aid Expedition have and will make a huge difference!

Why do I love Vietnam?

People often ask why do I love Vietnam so much... well, of course, it goes without saying, because my three beautiful children were born there. But it goes much deeper than that. I love Vietnam for its beautiful landscapes, its intriguing street life, its water buffaloes (okay... that was Ashton's reason), its amazing architecture, its wonderful food, its culture and history, but most importantly... for its people.

Maybe I can explain it more via pictures rather than words...

Landscapes

There are so many beautiful lakes in Vietnam... here is Hoan Kiem Lake in Ha Noi:

And all of the rice paddies and green lush landscape:

The mountains that plunge into the water:

And life on the water:

Street Life

Oh the beloved Honda Dream...
Amazingly, people actually wear helmets now... that wasn't the case until just recently:
Love, love, love the smells, sounds and excitment of the streets in Vietnam:

Yes, it is perfectly acceptable to walk right into traffic... no one cares... they just drive around you without even slowing down:

More Reasons to Love Vietnam

Water Buffaloes

Nothing says "Vietnam" more than a water buffaloe (at least, that is the case for Ashton):

Random

Water puppets:

Incense (love the smell of incense burning everywhere):

Architecture

Interesting homes, temples, pagodas, buildings, etc:

Even More Reasons to Love Vietnam

The Food

I am not talking about Pho, Lemongrass chicken or any of the other wonderful dishes readily available in VN... I am talking about the truly special dishes such as "Bugers"... specifically, I love the the Ho Hum Buger (HUMBUGER):I really do miss me some Highlands coffee:

And I have been practicing my squats so that I can get in/out of the little blue plastic chairs:

Can't wait to get back to all of the steet cafes:

And of course... some Bia hơi ;-)

The People

But the number one reason I love Vietnam is because of all of the interesting, open, and caring people:

Just look at these awesome kids:

Ben Thanh Market

Planning activities are now all in full swing for our trip. We have decided to stay in the backpack district our first night after arriving into HCMC so that we will be within walking distance to Ben Thanh Market. This market is so famous that there is even a Wikipedia entry about it (and we all know how I love me some Wiki!):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Thanh_Market

We should arrive after midnight to our hotel on Friday, March 26th (VN time). That is if all goes well through Japan (since Delta/Northwest have canx'd their NRT to HCMC routes and that JAL has filed bankruptcy). All of our flight arrangements are still a work in progress. That is also assuming that we don't get held hostage by a renegade "unlicensed" taxi driver... been there, done that... learned THAT lesson the hard way!

So anyways, that is the plan... we will try to sleep off some jet lag, but knowing we will be wide awake ready to go by about 4 am. We will spend the day (Saturday, March 26th) at the market buying the essentials for the rest of our trip (North Face backpacks, etc). Knowing how jet lag hits me, I would image I will be down for the count by 5 pm Saturday night. Sunday, March 27th we will meet up with all of the other Catalyst Foundation volunteers and head off to Rach Gia by bus. Then the working part of the trip comes in. Can't wait to meet some of the people that I know only via email. More details to come...

Team Assignments and FUNdraising Results

Ashton and I are so excited that we were assigned to the School Team. The school team will install and paint new playground equipment for the Vinh Quang school. We will also set up a computer center in the library and distribute bikes to the new students. We can't wait for our first team conference call to start the preparations.

As for our FUNdraising efforts... well, to date, we have raised... drumroll... $1,015. Can you believe it?!?! That is so very amazing to me and the generousity of my friends and family is touching. My goal was to raise $1,000 and Ashton's goal was to raise $500... looks like I am done and he has $485 more dollars to go ;-) Just kidding! We will work on raising our last $485 together with either a yard sale or something like that.

Thanks again to all of you amazing donors... you all ROCK!

March 2010 Goals

The Vietnam Aid Expedition held every two years provides direct assistance to the children we serve in Vietnam. This is a good will, volunteer trip. We have 85 volunteers, as young as 7 years old, traveling from across the U.S and Canada in March 2010 to Kien Giang.

Over 100 volunteers have traveled with us to Vietnam in the past and each of them has been deeply moved by the children they meet. This "volunteer vacation" is rewarding for everyone involved.
Here are our goals for March 2010:

HOME TEAM

$3000/home

Shelter from rain, wind and sun is a basic human need. The Home Team will renovate five homes in four days for children that have been sexually abused. This new home will give these families shelter, self-respect and the hope of a better life.

MEDICAL TEAM

$20/patient

To be a part of a more concerted effort to address child health problems and malnutrition for the children and families living on the garbage dump, a team of doctors, nurses and medical volunteers from Catalyst Foundation will provide basic medical and dental exams. The cost of $20 per patient covers a full series of Hepatitis B vaccination and fluoride treatments. We are expecting 800 patients in four days.

SCHOOL TEAM

$55/bike (80 bikes)
$2500 playground

$200/computer (100 computers)

The children attending Vinh Quang school are in need of larger playground equipment, computers for the library and bikes for our new students. The school team will install and paint the new playground, set up the computer center and prep the bikes. We will purchase equipment from the “one laptop per child” program. They are extremely durable, brilliantly functional, energy-efficient, and fun.

CAMP

$30/child

We’ll take all of the 130 children from our Vinh Quang school to play on the beaches of Ha Tien!

IN KIND DONATIONS

T-shirts/Shorts/Flip-flops for children and adults (all sizes!)

Arts & Crafts Supplies Beach toys – Frisbees, beach balls, temporary tattoos

Small toys - yo-yos, marbles, cards, jacks, matchbox cars, etc.

Stickers, stickers, stickers

Small first aid kits

Toothbrushes/toothpaste

Travel size soap, shampoo, washcloths

Onesies- for infants under 12 months

Board games & coloring books (for the library)