Oops

So, last Wednesday wad Blogger Action Day, and bloggers were supposed to post something on poverty. Whoops. I think I wrote something on a topic much more banal, but that's par for the course here. I believe that was the day I came home to no water. Whatever. I survived.

Of course, last Wednesday -- and for a few weeks, actually -- we were all looking at our own poverty. Something I'm an expert on. I think we all know what it is to be broke. Even if one is rich, he or she surely know what it is to be short of friends or love or self-esteem, luck or taste. You'd be amazed at the number of rich people who have no taste (Celine Dion's wedding ensemble would be one example). You'd think they could buy taste, but no. There's an incredible amount of stylists and decorators who have a phenomenally bad sense of humor. Still, the question that really needs to be asked is: Have you ever thought what it would be like to be truly poor?

I have.

Oh, when things have gotten really bad, very in the red, I've wondered where I would end up. How I would survive. Visions of Ramen and sleeping in the Ghetta have kept me up at night. That still holds the hope of food and shelter. Imagine having less. Imagine having others depend on you as well as you are grasping for your own survival.

We've all got it pretty bad right now. Unless you are Oprah or Bono, Bill Gates or that Murdoch sunnuvah. Outside of that, we are all trying to put our poverty into perspective. So, imagine this year...a really bad year for everyone...when you are relying on the support of charities, the help of strangers, and wondering if that might come. What you will do if it doesn't. If you are working a job reliant upon tips and seeing those dwindle as everything else rises. If you are looking for work, or got sick or your car broke down, your house if foreclosed, your life repossessed; how on earth would you cope? Are you coping? The sad fact is, no matter how bad one might have it, there is always someone else who has it worse. It's a horrendous thought when you think of the worst that can happen to you and then add that axiom. It's almost paralyzing.

Okay, this is a much more gloomy post than you usually read here. Yeah, I can go to the bluer side of the mountain from time to time. It's in my Aries/Scorpio Rising/Capricorn Moon nature. That Capricorn Moon can be a real downer. My point, however, is that when we are looking for our own silver lining (since putting the platinum one on credit is no longer an option), we should remember those who might be looking for a tin or aluminum can to cash in. It's a scary time for everyone. We can only get through it if we ban together. We are a community known as the Human Race. So, even though this post is a week late, think of whom and how you can help. Give what you can. It's not something you will have less of' you will actually gain more from it and in more ways than you can imagine. Trust me. Especially if you need a karma booster.

As the holidays slowly approach, and the harsh weather nears, I hope we will all remember that and do what we can, even if it is only to ask for help.