A friend of ours told us about a project that his brother and sister-in-law are endeavoring on. They are Jonny and Michelle, boutique photographers, and the couple behind Paper Antler. Their work is beautiful and captivating. Looking through their photos I see hope, love, romance, passion, adventure, and an unquenchable joy for life. Their desire is to bring together their passions–their gift for capturing the beauty of the world around them and social justice– through the Fifty Nifty project. One of the things that I really love is that it will only work if others join them. We need each other and the success of this project is dependent on more than just this lovely couple. It isn’t safe. It is risky. They are putting themselves out there with faith that they will be joined and that is beautiful.

Fifty Nifty:

• Beginning in January of 2012, Jonny and Michelle will begin an adventure that will span one year.
• Their goal: photograph 50 weddings in 50 states in 50 weeks donating $1000 from each wedding to She Dances for a total donation of $50,000. While this is their ideal goal, their primary goal is to raise $50,000 for She Dances in 50 weeks.
• She Dances is an anti-human trafficking organization that they have worked closely with over the years.
• $50,000 would assist She Dances in sustaining their current safe home in Honduras for one year or allow them to open a new safe home in another place of need.
• They have a route mapped out, so check it out to see if they will be in your area when you or someone you know is getting married. Download this PDF for information about their route.
• Spread the word.

Paper Antler‘s blog will have updates on Fifty Nifty bookings and other Fifty Nifty related news.

Being a mama has taught me that the most important thing I can do to care for my son is be present and available to him.  It has also shown me that that is really what all of us need.  We need people to be present and available to us. Sometimes that takes the form of showing up when there is a need, being there for one another, and giving what we can.

If you visit the site (versus getting it in your RSS feed or as an e-mail), you may have noticed a new addition to the site!  On the right hand side of the site you will notice the addition of “Give A Gift”.  We have chosen to highlight World Vision, Heifer International, and Partners in Health.  These are not ads and at a later point I will go into why I have decided to use that space on my site to support non-profits in lieu of ads.  Each of these images will bring you directly to a page on their site where you can choose to give a financial gift to the non-profit organization.  There are many great organizations out there, but these are ones that we know really well and trust.

The day after Thanksgiving has become a Holiday spending spree, so much so, that it has been dubbed “Black Friday” because it has become the most profitable day of the year for many businesses.  I know that there are very complicated economics involved here regarding businesses “counting” on shoppers to shop.  However, our vision of Christmas has evolved slowly, but rather dramatically, over our years together.  In fact, it has changed so much so, that even what I mean by vision has changed.  In the past, I strained to create The Vision of Christmas with hope that if I did so, I would be able to feel the warmth and love of The Vision inside myself.

I wanted so badly to feel that warmth, love, and closeness of family.  I thought the gateway to all this was to create the ideal picture of Christmas–presents, lots of food, holiday cheer which, was best created by having the right atmosphere… stockings, christmas tree, christmas lights, snow-hot chocolate-fireplace, the smell of food.  What I didn’t understand was that I got it all backwards.  That warmth and love came out of being close to Kendall and now also to Finn.  I now know within me (although my brain is still being re-trained), that when I give myself over to loving and being loved by these two people and other loved ones, and that when we have our need for food, shelter, health, and other basic needs met, that my life is bountiful.

I want to be clear, I don’t think there is anything wrong with giving gifts to those you know and love–you know yourselves and your loved ones best.  However, I would like to ask you to join our family in giving to those who are not able to rest in knowing their basic needs are being met.

Opponents of this proposal have said that it taxes those who cannot afford to purchase reusable bags. So to alleviate that cost, the city of Seattle will distribute reusable paper bags to all residents, also giving lower income residents additional bags to use.

The council also passed a ban on plastic foam food containers that is a two-phase project. The first phase will address take out containers and it will take effect in January as well. Restaurants will not be allowed to use plastic foam in their takeout containers. The second phase will take effect July 2010 and focuses on all plastic food containers and utensils. Businesses will be able to use only recyclable or biodegradable products for their food containers.

I’m glad to see that our city is taking steps to reduce the unnecessary waste produced by convenience. If you live in a place that is using plastic bags and you feel like you want to make changes to that, Bring Your Own Bag is a great organization that is fighting for that. They also recently posted to their blog specifically addressing the situation in North America.