Remember Biafra?
When I was in college, people were starving in Biafra. Ok, so I’m dating myself here.
Starving child during the Nigerian-Biafran war (c. 1968)
The country of Biafra only existed from 1967 to 1970, having divided off from Nigeria before being forcibly reintegrated.
Because of civil war, over 1 million people died, mostly from hunger.
My heart went out to them, and I wanted to do something about it. So I got our college administration to agree to make a donation for every student who skipped dinner on a designated night.
OK, so far, so good, but now I had to persuade the student-body to sign up to go without dinner.
I made my pitch one morning in chapel, giving one of the most important speeches I had yet to give, this time to thousands of my peers.
Now I didn’t really like public speaking (still don’t)…but people will do all kinds of things when lives are at stake and they believe in a cause.
Did our action save any children? I don’t know . . . I’d like to think it helped.
Flash forward now a few years (okay, a few decades).
Public speaking is still not something that I like (I’m really working on being better at it), but I will put myself out there for something that I believe in.
Thank goodness the quickest way to reach a large audience no longer requires public speaking. Posting a blog can accomplish many of the same goals.
This past January, Bill O’Hanlon and I had just put out a new product.
Two days later, the devastating earthquakes hit Haiti.
I called Bill and suggested that we give 50% of the money from the product to the relief effort. Being the magnanimous guy that he is, he immediately agreed.
We ended up sending thousands of dollars to Haiti.
I’ve been talking recently about the positive effects that blogs can have for practitioners.
The value that a well-thought out blog site can have is numerous: increasing referrals, building a practice, selling your books, and gaining speaking opportunities.
But blogs can also be an effective vehicle to raise consciousness about an issue that fills you with the passion that Biafra filled me.
We’ve created a 5-Part Video series to help you learn how to create your blog, how to get readers to find it, and how to monetize it.
It’s free. Practitioners from all around the world have watched and left hundreds of comments.
You can check them out here.
So glad you talked about the value of blogs that don’t exist just to draw attention to the writer or to make money.
Some will be on topics that don’t draw wide readership (though as you say it would be good to go beyond mother!) but still have a valuable viewpoint to share.
It’s easy to get disheartened if you don’t get much beyond double digits in subscribers and rarely get comments. Does that mean you’ve failed?
Maybe what is shared is so clear that it doesn’t need more than a ‘like’;or so thought-provoking that it requires special effort to respond adequately.
Of course, it is nice to get approval and acknowledgment. But sometimes you’ve got to be brave and risk making waves. Others might be afraid to join in but still read you.
Finally, if we’re all blogging away and hopefully doing things off the computer too, who is there to read and share?
WOW!!! I’m hooked! The depth & content of your blog is amazing. I subscribe to the philosophy that “when the student is ready, the teacher will arrive”. Hello teachers!
My issue in college was the Viet Nam War. Burned ROTC buildings on campus, riots in the streets, the tumultuous 60′s and early 70′s, and, yes, this was in the quiet air capital of the world, Wichita, Kansas.
Today my personal issue is distracted drivers. Four and a half years ago, I was paralyzed by a driver who was using his cellphone and speeding to the airport to avoid missing his flight. His life proceeds on, barely skipping a beat I suppose, while mine has been turned upside down forever by his inability to be in the present moment while driving.
I am anxiously awaiting video five! The first four have been so helpful. I would like to see video two, the behind the scenes blog / website development information, in more detail, larger for easier viewing, and a bit slower. A post video reference page with resources used to construct your awesome blogs & websites would help as well (Thanks, Bill!).
What a treasure trove of knowledge this student has stumbled upon at the perfect time in her life, thanks to the link in Bellruth Naparstek’s “Health Journeys” online newsletter!
Do I remember Biafra? My goodness, that brings back memories. I was 21, had just given birth to my first child, we had just bought our first house, I was praying that the draft board would stop sending letters to my husband asking him who was taking care of his child. He had just gotten his first job after college and was making about $400.00 a month. Our house payment was about $120.00, car payment was about $70.00, I don’t remember what utilities were back then, but I can assure you that we didn’t have an extra penny to our name. Then I read an article in Life Magazine about the children in Biafra and saw their gaunt faces with those incredible eyes and those horribly distended stomachs. And I looked at my beautiful baby boy, healthy and well fed and wanted to do something. So I prayed for the children of Biafra. I remember sitting in a Women’s Circle Meeting at church and asking that we pray for those children. Most of the women there didn’t seem to know what I was talking about. My husband made a donation to Christian Children’s Fund. That was all we could do. I wish to this day that I had done more. So thank you, Ruth for what you did.
Hi Ruth, We are a non-profit and since the recession have been hard hit economically. I may be interested in the course you are offering for $497. I have listened to other things you and Bill O’Hanlon have done and I know you highly recommend aweber. I do not have aweber; I have Constant Contact which I am happy with. My concern with the upcoming course is will it really help me if I don’t have aweber? If I can use the information or still have you do the back end things without aweber and spending a lot more money to implement what you are suggesting, I’m in. If not, it will only be a waste of my money. Can you advise me if this course has these limitations or can I use the information, still have the back-end things done by you, without extra cost and without using aweber. Thanks for answering this.
Sister, you’ll be fine even if you don’t use Aweber. And yes, we can do lots of things to help your blog without it.
Ruth
Dear Ruth,
Thank you for your mail.
I am humbled to read of your efforts during the Nigerian-Biafran Civil War. No doubt your effort must have done a lot in saving the dieing children then. It may have come as Red Cross Relief or Caritas relief materials like food. May be as drugs or clothings. These are the things we received then in refugee camps where most of us were then camped.
Being a survivor myself, I stand as witness that your effort and those of many others like you did in fact achieve results. The role of Energy Therapy in helping me heal completely has been immense. As part of my contribution in helping fellow survivors and combatants in the war also heal, I have formed a humanitarian project under my GoldenRays Energy Therapy Ventures known as COMMUNITY ENERGY HEALTH PROJECT -CEHP through which I hold free workshops and seminars to help locals, children, school pupils and many others come to terms with their physical and emotional challenges – some dating back to the Biafra war; to heal.
On the course, I hope to be part of it. I am pioneering Energy Therapy in my country. Interest is just about developing because this is the first time Energy Work is being presented in the country. In terms of business, it does not hold much promise but I believe the situation will change for the better as we march on. Presently I fund all my workshops and seminars including my humanitarian project.
Once again, thanks and Many Blessings,
Chief (Dr) Iwowarri Berian James ACEP Certtified Energy Health Practitioner Founder: GoldenRays Integrated Energy Therapy Africa Regional Coordinator for ACEP ( USA )