Money Saving Monday - Tsunami

Let's be truthful, I had a totally different idea for this week's blog, until around 5 am Friday morning. As I'm sure most of you know, Japan was devastated this last week by a massive earthquake that led to a dangerous and deadly tsunami. Thursday night my husband and I arrived in Crescent City, California for a weekend-long marriage retreat without our daughter. We went to sleep around midnight or one am only to be woken up at 3 to a phone call from the retreat leader telling us that we needed to evacuate. We left our hotel and went to higher ground with our group. We ended up at a rest stop up north at 4 am. We were cold, we were hungry, and we were huddled with complete strangers who didn't know when they were going to be able to go home.

We were blessed to have a house to go home to. People weren't allowed back into Crescent City until about 6 pm that night. People were stranded at higher ground with whatever they brought with them until they were allowed back home.

Now I know that this was nowhere near the worst of the tsunami. I know that so many don't have homes to return to. I know that so many people have lost their lives in this tragedy. But this is something that I saw with my own eyes this weekend.

You might be wondering where I'm going with this; what does all of this have to do with “Money-saving Monday”? Well let me pose this question to you: what do you do with the money you save? Do you have a change jar, a savings account, or do you have barely enough money to make it to begin with- your money goes straight to bills? Today I'm not going to give you any tips, I'm not going to offer advice or anything, I just want to let you know what I am doing with my savings, they are going to a church that is helping with the Red Cross in Crescent City. They are providing help for the locals in whatever they may need. They are also helping to rebuild the harbor and docks which are completely ruined. And when I have no money, I will keep praying for the entire world as we all have been affected by this in one way or another.

Many savings to all and to all some spare change,

Laura