Global Perspective

Since being prego, I have been thinking a lot about how we are going to raise our children and thus, I have come up with a simple philosophy:

"To instill a global perspective in our future generation"

So...what does that exactly entail? I hope that our kids will realize that they have a huge responsibility living as God's children and that we must do our very best to take care of what we have. I want them to know that their actions, whether big or small, will impact our world. Our lives are altered by the choices that we make each and every single day.

Some of the ways to instill this global perspective would be ask the following questions to our kids, and to ourselves. Feel free to answer them if you feel compelled to do so...(I got the questions from World Vision)

• Do we buy fair trade and environmentally responsible products?
• Do we pray for events in the news?
• Do we choose to live simply as a means of having more to give away?
• Do we reconcile our reality with that of others and live in a way that makes a positive difference for us all?

The above questions are very difficult and I often struggle with them. I know that I want to live simply yet I yearn to have nice things. Say for example, buying baby stuff. Sure, it would be great to buy the latest and funkiest stroller so that I can take baby out running in the trails but, do I really need the most expensive one? And that is just one of the many other purchases that we will have to make. And did you know that some cribs can cost up to $2000? That is absolutely insane. We want to purchase minimally so that we don't fall into the trap of consumerism.

Another thing that I'm still debating is whether or not we should use cloth diapers instead of disposible ones. Our land fill is already filled to the limit and to add more waste such as diapers seem ridiculous. Vince and I are both willing to do whatever is possible to reduce waste...and yes, we are strong advocates for recycling, composting, and turning off lights whenever not used. We are also very pleased to hear that some of our friends are also becoming more environmentally aware. One even joined the Greenpeace. No matter how big or small our actions are, as long as we are thinking globally, then we will make a difference.