I love this part of the process ... when you haven't been told NO yet. When the wind hasn't been knocked out of the sails yet. When you only share it with supporters so you know you'll be getting just that ... support. When you're getting lots of "we're here to support you" instead of "we're here to discourage you every step of the way".
Eventually, I faded off. After getting the older kids off to school this morning, I took a minute to grab a book. I opened to the next page to read and on the top was this quote:
"Start by doing what is necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible." - St. Francis of Assissi
Love that!
When we went to China in March, I felt it was possible to do "Something". I remember telling people, "I don't know how to get feeding trucks to Africa, but I certainly can get shoes and socks on kids so they don't lose toes to frostbite." I felt I was doing what was possible.
Now this next step seems so very impossible. It's big. OK, let's be honest ... it's HUGE. I can't imagine how much money this will be. The start up costs, the daily running costs, paying caretakers, food for the children, diapers, heat, auuuugh!
Then there are the questions ... a few that leap to mind:
Do I make frequent trips? Short ones? Long ones? Temporarily relocate?
Do I start looking to find funding through corporations or churches or college clubs? Which model do we use?
How do I get a new 501 (c) 3? Do I need one? Can I use the one we already have access to and do a DBA under it?
Is there someone who can walk me through some of this early stuff so I don't reinvent the wheel?
What about volunteers to do some of the massive amounts of coordination? And what all needs to be coordinated?
When should I schedule a trip over? Soon? Wait a bit?
How do I go against my every instinct and start asking for support (help, prayer, volunteers, donations, funding, sponsors, etc.)
Just to name a few.
But I feel that the step from the "possible" to the "impossible" is just taking one step at a time.
People have been asking what they can do to help. Here goes: Think about YOUR resources you have access to. Think of people you know, churches, corporations, etc and who has a heart for the Children of China? If you're like most people, we have resources in our network that we don't even consider as resources. Once you figure out someone(s), we can decide ways to talk to this person/group. (For example, I'm creating a proposal for Churches to see if they would like to come on as a regular supporter, to "adopt" this new orphanage alternative.)
At this point, we need EVERYTHING! You might think that what you have to offer isn't very helpful, but the truth is ... it's going to take our whole village to raise these children!
