ISRAEL- GAZA and the refugee crises!

I haven’t written anything about the recent events in the world, because there is nothing to say anymore. The inhumanity in our society is disgusting and upsetting. If I had to describe this mess in one word, it would be Tragedy! 

It’s interesting how every time I release a song, it turns out to be a prediction song. My Mission, Lily Amis, feat. Thir13een was released on September 13th and another cruel war began on October 7th. Meanwhile, no one is speaking about the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia. It has become normal to witness CRIME in front of the global media and world leaders, and no one is capable of ending this human tragedy and mess!

The lack of humanity in our society has been the main reason for the refugee crisis for decades. The refugee issue has completely gotten out of control. I’m upset and sad, and I feel helpless and hopeless about the future. I have tried my best to bring awareness with Lily4Refugees and my online petition #HumanityB4Nationality in 2020. And so much more has happened ever since. So there comes a point in life when you just have to face the harsh and disgusting reality and protect yourself from troubling thoughts.

As difficult as it is, I know now for sure that the refugee crisis won’t EVER end. Because the war business is a money-making machine. We are talking about greedy, mighty hungry fortune hunters who have no moral values and no humanity in their bones and DNA!!! 

The refugees stuck in refugee camps for decades will continue to suffer and the ones who have lost their existence overnight are the next victims of war who will suffer with absolutely no hope for a better future. What’s the difference between today and World War I and II? Nothing!!! Nothing has changed. Humans are hopelessly selfish and Godless creatures with frozen hearts and consciences.

In recent weeks I have been contacting refugee organizations and, believe it or not, they deleted my emails without even reading them. There are plenty of charity organizations with different topics/issues but in my personal opinion and experience so far, NONE of them is as USELESS & CORRUPT as the global refugee organizations. So that’s why I have decided to focus on Lily4Humanity. Lily4Refugees will continue to be part of Lily4Humanity, but no longer my main topic!

Lily4Humanity supporting Smile Train UK

Smiling is something that most people take for granted. But we should never take anything in life for granted. Those who can walk, talk, speak, eat, hear, smell, and touch are blessed. Being healthy means you are a rich person. 

Smile Train was founded in 1999. It provides free corrective cleft surgery in 87 countries. Changing the World One Smile at a Time. A baby with a cleft is born every 3 minutes. These babies can experience isolation and often face prejudice in their communities. No child deserves to feel like an outcast. You can save a child’s life with the gift of cleft treatment

I'm delighted to raise awareness for Smile Train UK with my Lily4Humanity project and my upcoming release MY VISION, Lily Amis feat. Thir13een.

DONATE NOW!

CONFIRMATION OF LILY4HUMANITY 

COOPERATION WITH SMILE TRAIN UK

 

STAY TUNED FOR MY VISION SONG & VIDEO RELEASE 

ON NOVEMBER 13TH!

Lily4Humanity - CBM History

Ernst Jakob Christoffel and his sister Hedwig in 1908

Lily4Humanity is delighted to raise awareness for an organization with a great history of humanity. 

The Beginning: Turkey

In 1908, Christoffel set out for Turkey and founded a home in Malatia for blind and otherwise disabled and orphaned children, with the support of only a handful of friends. The mission societies to which he had applied before saw no commission for helping the blind in the Orient.

World War I

Christoffel’s work came to an end when the First World War broke out. In 1919, he was expelled and Turkey remained closed to him, as to all Germans.

From Turkey to Iran

As soon as the ban was lifted, Christoffel set out for Turkey again, but the house in Malatia was lost. Attempts to start again in Constantinople (later Istanbul) resulted in renewed prohibition, so Christoffel went to Iran. In 1925 and 1928, two homes were set up in Tabriz and Isfahan, respectively, for blind and otherwise disabled young people.

Persecution during World War II

The Second World War destroyed everything, and the threat of deportation was imminent. Christoffel did not want to leave his charges on their own. In 1943, he was arrested and spent three years behind barbed wire, but his will remained unbroken.

Return to Iran

As soon as he had access in 1951, Christoffel returned to Isfahan. Despite the fact that he was ailing and 70 years of age, he went on helping the disabled, poor, and abandoned in the name of Jesus Christ. Pastor Christoffel died on 23 April 1955. His tombstone in Isfahan names him the "Father of the Blind, Deaf-Mute, Physically Disabled and Orphans".

 

The commitment of Pastor Ernst Jakob Christoffel to the education and rehabilitation of persons with disabilities laid the foundation for an organisation that is today one of the leading international development organisations for persons with disabilities worldwide.

Over time, CBM’s policy has widened from serving blind people to giving all persons with disabilities access to basic healthcare services. There are one billion persons with disabilities in the world. Most of them live in developing countries. About 2.5% of these people are covered by CBM’s programmes.

Lily4Humantiy supporting CBM SWISS

Last Friday we met the head of Communication from CBM Swiss Michael. We had a Zoom chat back in July regarding my Lily4Humanity Creativity Contest and my song release MY VISION.

But I had so many questions and it was easier to meet in person and Michael answered everything. So the first reason why I chose CBM Swiss is because my mum and I, we both had eye surgeries in recent years. Mine was actually in July and August 2022. As you know from my previous post, I also had two eye surgeries as a kid and had to wear eyeglasses until the age of 12.

Life is hard and challenging as it is and I honestly wonder how people with disability especially blindness handle it with all the daily obstacles. There are many charities that support VISION but when I read about CBM's history, I knew that with Lily4Humanity and my upcoming song release, I have to support this charity and raise awareness about their incredible work.

The history of CBM and its founder Pastor Ernst J. Christoffel, born in 1876 in Germany, is inspiring and fascinating. The founder’s idea of an inclusive world in which all persons with disabilities enjoy their human rights and achieve their full potential is exactly my vision of humanity. In my next post, I will share Pastor Christoffel's life story.

Now back to our meeting with Michael and my Q&A:

How many operations (cataract surgery) are performed per month?

10 000 (Ten thousand)

How much is the cost of a cataract surgery? For adults 50 CHF, for children 180 CHF because they have to undergo the surgery under anesthesia. People assume that Cataract is only a problem for elderly people but the truth is that 2% of these numbers are actually children under the age of 18.

When was the first surgery? It was in 1966. Ever since CBM has made 16 Million surgeries possible. It is almost twice the size of Switzerland’s population. 

How much percent of a donation goes actually to the surgery?

From 100%:  82% goes into surgery, 14% into Communication, Advertising & Fundraising, and 4% into administration. 

What I like about this charity is in contrast to other Christian organizations, CBM actually really works for humanity. They don’t care about nationality, gender, age and religion. Humanity is the best word to describe their philosophy.

DONATE NOW!

CONFIRMATION OF LILY4HUMANITY 

COOPERATION WITH CBM SWISS

What if God is just one of us?

The other day I was on my way to an appointment sitting on the bus right behind the bus driver. A female passenger got on the bus and knew him. So they greeted each other and I heard the following conversation. I wasn’t eavesdropping, they were speaking loudly.  

Bus driver: How are you?

Female passenger: I can’t complain, I’m fine.

Bus driver: Good. There is no point in complaining anyway, right?

Female passenger: I’m in good health, so I’m ok.

Bus driver: You are rich when you are healthy.

Female passenger: At least today the weather is nice; it’s not an ugly day.

Bus driver: There are no ugly days. Every day is beautiful, even the rainy days. Ugly is what humans are doing. Ever since COVID, I got rid of my TV, I get out of the house and enjoy every single day. In Asia and America, people don't complain about the weather all the time like people do here in Switzerland. The mainstream media is terrible and influencing us way too much. You can’t find honesty anymore.

All this time I could only hear the bus driver’s voice. I couldn’t see him and I was wondering how old he was when he ended his shift and got off the bus for lunch break and the next driver got in. A grumpy female driver in a bad mood. Now I could see the wise driver. A random man with eyeglasses in his late fifties. I couldn’t hold myself back. I looked at him and said: I love your attitude. He was surprised and just smiled back at me.

And I thought to myself, "What if God is just one of us? A stranger on the bus?" Do you recognize the lyrics from a song title? Here we go: 

My takeaway from this is that sometimes God speaks through people and reminds us that we should be thankful. The lady who he was talking to needed his uplifting and positive attitude. For me it was a confirmation, that there is still hope in our shallow, selfish, and Godless society. 

One of Us Song by Joan Osborne Lyrics

… If God had a name what would it be?
And would you call it to his face?
If you were faced with Him in all His glory
What would you ask if you had just one question?

… And yeah, yeah, God is great
Yeah, yeah, God is good
Yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah

… What if God was one of us?
Just a slob like one of us
Just a stranger on the bus
Tryin' to make his way home?

… If God had a face what would it look like?
And would you want to see
If seeing meant that you would have to believe
In things like heaven and in Jesus and the Saints
And all the prophets?

… And yeah, yeah, God is great
Yeah, yeah, God is good
Yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah

… What if God was one of us?
Just a slob like one of us
Just a stranger on the bus
Tryin' to make his way home?

… Just tryin' to make his way home
Back up to heaven all alone
Nobody callin' on the phone
'Cept for the Pope, maybe in Rome

… And yeah, yeah, God is great
Yeah, yeah, God is good
Yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah

… What if God was one of us?
Just a slob like one of us
Just a stranger on the bus
Tryin' to make his way home?

… Just tryin' to make his way home
Like a holy rolling stone?
Back up to heaven all alone
Just tryin' to make his way home

… Nobody callin' on the phone
'Cept for the Pope maybe in Rome

MY VISION - MY STORY - MY MISSION!

Yeah, October is here! Really love the colours in fall. Do you feel the Christmas spirit as we do? I’m working for weeks on my next song release. “MY VISION” which is the third song connected to my Lily4Humanity project. It will be out on November 13th, right in time for Christmas!

However, no matter what faith we follow, we should thank GOD every single day and be grateful for our blessings, and never forget that there are people who struggle and suffer more in life than we do.

Being able to SEE is a blessing that most people take for granted. But did you know that there are 1.1 billion people with visual impairments worldwide? Of these, 43 million are blind, and 295 million people are severely visually impaired. For at least 1 billion people, vision impairment could have been prevented or treated!

Being able to SMILE is something that most people take for granted as well. But did you know that cleft lip and palate is a common birth defect? It occurs About together in 1 of every 1,000 babies, somewhat more in males than females. 20% have a cleft lip only, 30% have a cleft palate only, and 50% of children with a cleft lip will also have a cleft palate. Most of the time, a cleft is caused by genetic and environmental factors coming together in a way that can't be predicted or prevented.

“My Vision” is an awareness song for two great charities close to my heart.

CBM SWISS was founded in 1908 by the German pastor Ernst Jakob Christoffel, who built homes for blind children, orphans, physically disabled, and deaf persons in Turkey and Iran. Initially, CBM's efforts were focused on preventing and curing blindness, but now they cover other causes of disabilities as well!

SMILE TRAIN UK gives every child the chance to smile! Smile Train was founded in 1999. It provides free corrective cleft surgery in 87 countries. Changing the World One Smile at a Time. 

My GOAL is not only to raise awareness for these two great charities but hopefully also to encourage people to donate to CBM SWISS, support people's vision, and gift them eyesight and a brighter life and future. And to donate to SMILE TRAIN and gift a smile for those who can’t smile.

What is better than helping people with disabilities? Instead of spending/wasting money on useless Christmas gifts, think twice about your gift ideas this year. You could help so many people and change their lives and future. You can also make gifts in your friends and family member’s names and surprise them with your original gift idea of blessing people with eyesight and a smile. 

You probably wonder what my motivation is and why I support these two charities. Well, I was born with a misalignment of the eyes. Squinting is not just a cosmetic defect, but a serious visual impairment. I’m so grateful to my mum for all the sacrifices that she made, which made it possible for me to get early surgeries and treatment.

Shortly after the two pictures above – I was about 2.5 years old - I had my first eye surgery at the Camden & Islington University College Hospital in London. 1.5 years later, I had my second eye surgery at the age of four at the Eye Clinic University in Giessen, Germany. After the second surgery, we had to stay in Giessen for an entire year because of the weekly therapies, and I was forced to wear eyeglasses. I still have these eyeglasses. :-)

m so grateful to my incredible caring mum for all the sacrifices that she made, which made it possible for me to get early surgeries and treatment.

I also had eye surgeries in the summer of 2022, which made me realize once more how valuable our eyesight is.

Did you know that with only 33 dollars, you give a person the chance to wear eyeglasses? With only 55 dollars, you give a person with a cataract the chance to get surgery! A life-changing and precious gift that will change someone’s destiny forever! DONATE NOW! 

 

STAY TUNED FOR MY VISION SONG & VIDEO RELEASE 

ON NOVEMBER 13TH!