CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME

It's the first ever International Day of Charity; a day set aside to honour benevolence, love, and willful contribution to the earth and its people. The average Nigerian will ask; How much do I have for me to start thinking of giving out for charity? Have I finished feeding my kids before I consider the kid on the street? Is my house big enough for me before I start thinking of housing some abandoned kids? The average person feels you need to have so much before you can become charitable. But how true is this? We'd study the life of one of the most benevolent person that has ever lived, and in the end I guess we'd be able to answer this question.


Late Mother Teresa founded the missionaries of charity, a Roman Catholic religious congregation which in 2012 consisted of over 4500 sisters and is active in 133 countries. They run hospices and homes for people with HIV/AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis; soup kitchens; children's and family counseling programs; orphanages; and schools. She was the recipient of numerous honours during her lifetime including the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize.

She was born on 26 August 1910 in Skopje, now capital of the republic of Macedonia, but at the time was part of the Ottoman Empire. She lost her dad at 8, and from 12 she took a decision to dedicate her life to others. At 18 she left home for the convent; where she spent most part of her life developing her soul, creating a connection with God and a burden for humanity. Here's the emphasis though, on 10 September 1946, mother Teresa decided to do something crazy; she decided to leave the convent to live among the poor and help them. This charitable burden was the turning point in Mother Teresa's life.

Mother Teresa relating with some kids

Out in the heat and cold away from the comfort of the convent. She lived, helped and cared for the poor. Mother Teresa starved, suffered, and lived on scarce supplies; all these just to see other kids fed and medically taken care of. She had no income and had to resort to begging many times--all for a heart of charity.

Sometimes when I stop to think about all she went through, I still can't understand how a human heart could accommodate the sort of love she incubated in her heart. Then I think about our question again. Do you need so much to do charity? NO! You don't! You might not start a home to take care of motherless kids or abandoned destitutes, but that random act of kindness is what the world is asking from you? What can you give to others? Happy International Day of Charity.