 |
Used under the Unsplash License.
The content is still the king and brings money. But how ethical is it to sell emotions?
When I met *Sushil, a bubbly boy from far-western Nepal, at a lodge’s lobby in Kathmandu, his feet and head were wrapped in bandages. Born with a clubfoot, he had fallen off a tree while collecting fodder. Thanks to some good Samaritans, he was brought to Kathmandu and was out of danger after treatment.
His story of survival soon hit the pages of a prayer letter that went to hundreds of churches all over the world. And brought in donations, more than ever.
Then one day, as I was having lunch in the office garden, a guard came running to me and said, “An elderly lady wants to meet with a member of Marketing and Communications Department.”
I met with the British lady, probably in her late 70s, and invited her to our department. She took out the prayer letter from her bag and asked how the boy was faring. Recognizing Sushil, I narrated his story: how I got to know about him and how he felt when I interviewed him. He had recovered and returned to his hometown. Only a few weeks ago, the team leader managing the projects around his hometown had informed me that Sushil was fit and fine, ready to go to school.
Then she took out a crumpled envelope from her bag and handed it to me. There were some pound bills that she wanted to reach Sushil. She didn’t look wealthy but had a big heart. I called one of my colleagues from the finance and administration team and we accepted the money. I promised her that it would reach the boy.
When she quietly left the office, I kept pondering “Was it good to receive money from someone who herself looked like a person needing some?”
*The name has been changed to protect the identity of the person featured in post.
