I’m sitting in a hotel in Houston right now, listening to the latest episode of The Popcast. Earlier I talked to my girls and my mom on Skype, and I tried to do the math on the time difference between Kansas City, Missouri, and Nairobi, Kenya.

I’m flying to Africa tomorrow with Mercy House. (Except, by the time you’re reading this, I’ll already be in the air. Which is why I’m writing this early.) And that seems pretty crazy. Right?!

Anyway, so I’m listening to Knox and Jamie debate very important (or not-so-important) pop culture topics. And I’m trying to remember if they were the ones I heard mocking pet treat subscription boxes – or if it was someone else. It seems on-brand for Knox and Jamie, but now that I’m typing all this out, I’m doubting my memory.

Whatever. The point is that I recently saw an ad for a monthly subscription box of treats for your pet and then, very shortly thereafter, heard someone mock the entire thing. Rightly so. (Sorry, pet lovers. Side note: We saw The Secret Life of Pets over the weekend, and it was cute. Not the best animated film ever, but plenty funny and fun for the kids.)

Well, regardless of who said what about which box, the underlying point was, “Do we really need another subscription box?”

Maybe not. I don’t know. I personally love the idea of subscription boxes, and I have trial-subscribed and real-subscribed and unsubscribed to a whole bunch of them. I love getting fun things in the mail, for myself or my family. I mean, who doesn’t? But paying for it – and then actually using it (rather than letting it clutter up that one shelf in the basement) – is the thing. Right? Do you guys find these issues to be reasons you don’t jump on every subscription box that pops up? I do.

And THAT is why I love all the different options Mercy House’s Fair Trade Friday offers.

Now, you might know that Fair Trade Friday is a monthly subscription box of high-quality fair-traded items, delivered right to your door and providing employment to women all over the world. It’s amazing, and I’ve written about it before. All of the items sold by Mercy House are made by artisans in fair working conditions who were being paid a fair wage. And that is AWESOME. I love it.

But … maybe … a monthly box of fun goodies isn’t in your budget, even if you know you could use many of those cute items for gifts and it’s for a good cause AND ALL THE GOOD REASONS. *sigh* I know. You know how I know? Because I couldn’t justify it for my own budget. I tried, but I couldn’t.

BUT! You know what I could manage? Mercy House’s Earring of the Month Club. I love wearing earrings. (Side note: When I was a freshman in high school, I tried to wear a different pair of earrings every day. Belated thanks to my cousins for giving me the biggest box of hand-me-down earrings that year…) ANYWAY. I love earrings – and I love the {monthly} price of $11.99 of the Earring of the Month Club.

See, that’s the thing (okay, yes, that’s ONE thing) I love about Mercy House. You can support the work this organization is doing at any level. You can make a one-time donation, or you can set up recurring donations – and you can do as little as a few dollars or as much as, well, I don’t think there’s a limit! You can get a cute, handmade pair of earrings each month or buy a fun t-shirt (hello! That one up there is just $10!), or you can support a specific Rehema House resident or purchase something off the Mercy House wish list. You can host a party or run a 5K or tell a friend about Mercy House.

You don’t have to fly to Africa. You don’t have to subscribe to a box. But you CAN choose any number of ways to tackle poverty and empower women around the world. (And one of those ways gets you a pair of pretty earrings every month.)

Mercy House’s Earring of the Month Club works for me!

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