Every Good and Perfect Gift: The Ribbon Box Project

I’ve never been much of a writer, but I thought the events of the last day deserved to be acknowledged, because they have snowballed into something pretty big that will likely be the cornerstone of our fundraising efforts for Cliff, and beyond that, our desire to help other adopting families get funded, too.

I know that money is tight for everyone right now, it’s really not logical to assume that there is going to be some benevolent guardian angel with wads of cash descending from the heavens to fund adoptions. Wouldn’t that be nice? The reality of adoption is that it’s expensive, but anything worth having, is worth working for, so therefore, we work. We work really, really hard to get the funds together to cross oceans and meet orphans. We work really hard to get to a child who was deemed unworthy and unwanted and call them a loved, cherished daughter, or son. They are worth the effort. They deserve parents who will fight, and claw their way to them if that’s how it needs to be. So, we work.

One of the ways we work, is via crafts. I never really thought I would become a crafty person, that just wasn’t my personality, but it’s amazing what you’ll learn to do, and enjoy doing, when you need to put together thousands of dollars as fast as you can….therefore I make hair bows, jewelry, keychains, ornaments, wreaths, and pretty much anything someone is willing to donate money to our adoption for, I’ll be happy to make it. I feel blessed to have the ability to make things, I know there are plenty of people who are much better at it than I am, but I do my best, and like with everything else, I do it for His glory.

So, fast forward a little bit. I meet some amazing local people who love Cliff and want to see him home, and out of that I’m forming some awesome friendships. One of those lovely ladies writes to me and says I don’t have any money to donate to Cliff, but I have this box of ribbon, I know you make hair bows, I want you to have it so you can sell the bows to get him home.

I was floored.

Here is why.

It is very, very easy to see someone in need and tell yourself “I don’t have any money to help them” or “I don’t have time to help them”, and you would most likely be right, you don’t have the money to give away, you’re busy, you don’t have the time to dedicate to help someone…but…and this might sound harsh…that is a cop out. I think we all know that it is, too. Everyone can do something. Every single one of us can do SOMETHING to help SOMEONE every day, without fail, it’s possible.

Wouldn’t the world be an awesome place if we did?

This amazing woman couldn’t write a check to an adoption fund, she didn’t have time to dedicate to getting the word out about adoption, or volunteering at a yard sale, or whatever…but did that stop her from thinking about what she COULD do? No! She wanted to help, and she figured out a way to make it happen. I’m amazed by that.

So, from that donation, a group of friends and advocates and I decided to do something crazy, we want to document every dollar that comes in from the ribbon donated, and from all the craft supplies donated in honor of this first selfless donation. I’m going to keep track of it on the blog, and I can’t wait to go back to this wonderful woman when Cliff is home, and hand her a thank you card with the total amount of money brought in by the project that her donation started…The Ribbon Box Project.

I’m a firm believer in working hard, and I’m a firm believer in paying it forward, and this project is going to combine the two and hopefully bless not just my family, but several others as well. I’m going to turn this donation, and subsequent donations of craft supplies or donations to buy supplies into opportunities to work, craft, and create items to auction off or sell to fund adoptions. Every single adopting family who wants one of these items to sell at a fundraiser, or put into their auction will receive one, the shipping of the item will be on me.

So, lets work together to show everyone that even the tiniest of gestures can have an amazing ripple effect. There is never an act of kindness that is too small.