Guest Writer

Today I am sharing a post written by my brother, Merle Burkholder. His daughter is a nurse in a refugee camp in Bangladesh. This should give you a different perspective on our lot in this pandemic. 

We are living in a time of crisis. Our lives have been changed. We probably all know people who have lost their jobs or who are ill from the COVID-19 virus.

Yet here in North America we have much to be thankful for. We have some margin. We have some food in our houses. We have at least some financial reserves. We have church communities that are able to help each other through this time. We have governments that provide emergency aid to those who have lost their jobs.

Let's remember those who have a totally different experience right now.

For example, the government of India has ordered a three week shut down. The rickshaw drivers have been ordered off the streets. Many of them live one day at a time. They get paid each day and that is their food money for the next day. Suddenly, they have no food for tomorrow. They don't have a well stocked freezer to draw from either. People will die.

I think about the worker in Ethiopia who was working in a textile plant for about $25 per month. Now the plant is closed and they have no income. They have no food reserves. What will they do for their family?

I think about the several billion people in our world today who live on less than two dollars a day. They are the ones who will likely die at the highest rates.

I think about the inmates in correctional institutions.

I think about the refugees who are living in refugee camps.

When I think about these people, I am grateful for the margins that I have. I want to pray, and do what I can for others who are having a very different experience right now.

-Merle