Thank you from the parents and teachers of two hundred children in Africa!

Thanksgiving message

On this special day of Thanksgiving, I would like to thank you, all my Substack subscribers, for your continued, loyal support over the past year.

It is because of you that I am encouraged to continue sharing the important message of hope that even though we may not be able to change reality, we can change the way we experience it.

And it’s thanks to your subscriptions that I’m able to help some of the most disadvantaged people and animals in the world.

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Today I want to share the news of a particular donation that only happened because of your support. My wife, Koala, and I visit Masuwe Primary School every year when we go to Zimbabwe. Usually accompanied by a group of Mindful Safarians, we collectively donate exercise books, pens, toys and other things the kids and staff simply wouldn’t otherwise have.

This year on our visit, Mrs. Moyo the outgoing head of school, and the incoming head Mrs Gwara, sidled up to Koala and me and asked if we could provide daily porridge meals for the children. In the past, these nutritionally-enhanced meals had been paid for by other donors, including an international children’s charity. However, there has been no funding since Covid.

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The need

Koala and I said we’d see what we could do. We were certainly acutely aware of the need. Most of the 200 kids who attend Masuwe Primary School come from disadvantaged families. In many cases they arrive at school every morning having eaten no breakfast, because their families can barely afford a meal a day. What’s more, it’s not unusual for them to have to walk through the bush for over an hour just to get to school. Quite an undertaking for small children in a place where wild animals, including predators, are common.

Education can’t begin on an empty stomach, which is why the porridge scheme originally started. The headmistresses and their staff had experience with one particular kind of porridge, which is nutritious, easily prepared, and enjoyed by the children.

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Sourcing the porridge

Koala took it on herself to source the porridge from a Zimbabwe supplier once we returned home. This was no small undertaking given the many communication challenges. As we were ordering a year’s supply for a whole school, she managed to buy the porridge at wholesale rate. Masuwe Lodge, where we stay on our Mindful Safaris, kindly agreed to store the bulk order and deliver it in consignments, to minimise the chance of it being pilfered over the next 12 months.

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Delivery

After the order was placed, and money transferred there was the inevitable wait for delivery. But finally the day arrived, and Caissias, Manager at Masuwe Lodge, delivered the first consignment to the school.

Mrs Moyo said a brief ‘thank you’ to camera:

Mrs Moyo saying “thank you” for the porridge

And got the kids to follow suit – they are all very well-behaved!

The kids’ turn to say “thank you”

My own heartfelt thanks

The photo and video clips you’re seeing here may feel a world away from your own life and feel very remote. But, dear readers, none of this would have happened without you!

It is only because of a continued flow of subscription money that Koala and I were in a position to even contemplate this much-needed support. And thanks also, to the generosity of a few of the guests who joined us this year on Mindful Safari for also making contributions. And to Cass and the team at Masuwe Lodge for helping make this all happen.

For those of you who are not paying subscribers as much as you’d like to be, simply opening my emails and sharing them, when relevant, with others, is also a greatly-appreciated form of support. I would love to continue and expand what we do for sentient beings of both the human and non-human varieties - and this is possible if we continue to grow as a virtual community, and become the change we wish to see in the world.

One term’s worth of porridge on its way to storage

So, thanks to each and every one of you this Thanksgiving 2023!

May we all be grateful for our own precious human lives of leisure, fortune - and extraordinary capacity to help others!