Maybe It's Called Black Friday for a Reason

"Black Friday" is the day after Thanksgiving, the biggest shopping day of the year. When we put the word "black" in front of another word, it brings to mind negative impressions. The black plague is self explanatory, and then there is the Black Dalhia. Of course, if you are in the "black", you are considered to be making a profit. However, the majority of the time, black is perceived as negative. "Black Friday" can be considered good or bad, depending on your perspective.

At the best of times, I hate to shop. I go to the store only when necessary. There is nothing, no sale, no products, nothing at all that could lure me out to the shops to be battered, shoved, and nudged out of the way. There is nothing that I want so bad, that it can’t wait until Monday. I know people that will get out of bed at 4:00am to go shopping on Black Friday. It is somewhat of a tradition. A tradition of insanity as far as I am concerned. So, the way I see it is, on Thanksgiving, we all get together and eat a boatload of food and tell each other how thankful we are to be together and then the next day we meet in the cutthroat world of sales and shopping, and God help you if you don’t get out of my way. I wonder how thankful we truly are for our blessings when the very next day we celebrate greediness. How many people that attend Black Friday complain that the holidays are so commercial now. Wouldn’t be better to take 10% of the money that we planned to spend on that one day and help someone less fortunate? Maybe we could have a second chance day, a day that the people who were not fortunate enough to have a meal on Thanksgiving could have one.

I am not criticizing people who shop. There are many who are very responsible and who do think of those less fortunate. I am wondering about the commercial and corporate world that has been able to brainwash our society into thinking that material possessions are something to celebrate. One whole day is dedicated to the pursuit of possessions. Small children know what Black Friday is about. Do these same children know what a soup kitchen is? I, myself, live very comfortably; I have plenty of food, a bed to sleep in, more clothing than I can wear. So, I am not judging anyone more than I judge myself. My hope for the coming year is that I will have more empathy for my fellow man and I will learn to live more simply. Black Friday and shopping will not ever go away, but maybe we can own a little less and give a little more.

There were so many of these types of videos on You Tube, it was difficult to pick just one. I believe it illustrates my point quite well.

Update: I was very dismayed to hear on the news that this year people were already lining up for Black Friday four days before Thanksgiving. Maybe it should be called Black and Blue Friday. I can't think of any item that I want that much, except for peace in the world. Money can't buy that!

One in five deaths of children under five are due to water related diseases.

Nearly a billion, 884 million people do not have access to clean and safe water. 37% of those people live in Sub-Saharan Africa.

1 in 8 people world wide do not have access to safe and clean drinking water.

443 million school days are lost each year due to water-related diseases.

Less than one in three people in Sub-Saharan Africa have access to a proper toilet.

These are horrible statistics and very difficult to believe. I, myself, have a difficult time getting my mind around it. The next time I turn on my faucet, I pray that I will learn to be more grateful for what I have.

These statistics were found on the water project website found here:

http://thewaterproject.org/water_stats.php