On April 19th, I will be running in the Derby 10k, in Derby, with my dad. And in the time-honoured tradition of trying to rob people of their money whenever you do this kind of thing, I'm asking for sponsorship. This time, however, I've got a spare quarter of an hour, so bear with me as I explain why.
In the West, we tend to have a somewhat distant relationship with poverty. We're aware it's out there, but often it only enters our minds when we see news footage of some particular humanitarian tragedy, or an aid charity advert spouting statistics involving large numbers. In the UK, poverty is a tramp cadging a cigarette. Therefore, we're susceptible to the happy illusion that although obviously there are some unfortunate souls in the world, we and probably most people have a pretty average hand - an income, a bed, tap water, three square meals a day, that stuff's just normal right? Only in rare moments of clarity do we perceive the situation as it really is: The privileged few sitting on most of the planet's wealth, while half of humanity faces a daily struggle to exist.
Last January, I visited Rajasthan in India, which is why I've chosen this charity. India is the only developing country I have been to, and the experience was a total departure from anything else I've done. In Rajasthan, I visited my first ever desert. Even in January, the heat during the day was such that my poor Derbyshire drizzle-adjusted body demanded water by the bucketload - I can only imagine what it must be like in the summer. Bottled water, of course - you're advised not to drink the local water. Which is fine, if earning 20 rupees or whatever for a bottle of water involves a matter of minutes sat in an office or stood behind a bar back in England. But many of the people in Rajasthan are not, in fact, western tourists, and cannot afford bottled water. The local water - when it is available at all - is often not safe to drink.
We take water very much for granted. In England, at the petrol station in Five Lamps, you can get complimentary water just to keep your car running. I'll probably hypocritically knock back a litre of free spring water without even thinking about it right after I've run the Derby 10k. But imagine if our supply was not so well purified, or steady, or if we couldn't afford it. Of the many challenges facing an individual or a family living in poverty, especially in a hot climate, getting hold of clean water regularly is surely one of the most important to deal with. If you can't get hold of clean water, you'll settle for unsafe water, and risk all manner of serious illnesses that I can't spell. If there's a drought and you can't even get unsafe water, you'll die of thirst.
But people in this kind of situation can't just conjure up the knowledge and the resources required for a safe, steady water supply out of thin air - they need our help.
I'll stop being Bono now. Thanks!
Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii.
