About a month ago several of my friends got together to do our monthly Pinterest craft night. Our projects for the evening included several sewing projects to make relief kits for refugees or those in natural disasters. The Mennonite Central Committee gathers supplies to send all over the world when needed. One of the projects was sewing drawstring bags for relief kits to be filled with hygiene items such as towels and wash clothes, soap, toothbrush, etc. Our other project was making a comforter for bedding. We were able to use a lot of scraps of fabric that we had from other projects or that have filled the sewing rooms of our mothers and grandmothers for years. The comforter even had a few pieces of material left from when my grandma made my baby blanket decades ago. These projects were a lot of fun, although I may have had a few select words for my sewing machine since I haven't quite figured out how to use it. We all decided that in the future we will be ready and almost excited about being the "older women" of the church that can dedicate such amounts of time to sewing projects for those who are in need.
The same week that we were working on these sewing projects I was in the middle of packing up all our worldly possessions to move. I kept thinking about how different our situation was from a family that is forced to leave and take refuge for any number of reasons. Many times they leave on a spur of a moment due to fighting reaching their neighborhood or it is no longer safe for members of their families since they are being searched for by the authorities. When they pack up they can only take what they can carry and what they can pack in a few minutes. They may not know where they are going or for how long. Or if they will ever return to their homes.
As stressful as our move seemed-- and my husband informed me that we are not moving again-- it was good to keep it in perspective. We both had employment and a way to make a living. We had the funds to purchase a house for shelter. We didn't have to choose what to take or leave behind. We had a few trailers to haul all of our things. We weren't running from anything or in constant fear for our lives. How blessed we are in this process. We were able to pack blankets and toothpaste and towels. We might not have been able to find them but I knew I even had extras. It is also a blessing to provide these items for some family at a time when they needed it most. Omnia Vincit Amor.
The Mennonite Central Committee has an urgent need for hygiene and relief kits. These are great projects for many organizations and the MCC has a warehouse in Newton where these items could be dropped off to be shipped around the world-- many right now are headed to Syria, Iraq, and the Ukraine. Follow the links above for more information about the different kits that are needed as well as instructions for the sewing projects such as drawstring bags and comforters.
No comments:
Post a Comment