It's that time of the year again, when my mailbox fills up with "sponsor me" requests. On principle I never sponsor anyone, with anything. Not a sausage!
Why not you might wonder. Well...
1) I think the very vast majority of the physical challenges people sign up to do are stupid and ill-advised. Especially running a marathon. Why would I ever want to encourage my friends to participate in something that will damage knees and joints; not to mention hold up traffic for the better part of a day?
2) I find it immensely irritating that people have to justify their stupidity by pretending to be running for a charitable cause. It's hypocritical. No one runs a marathon for someone else. It a stupid enough thing to do for yourself, let alone for someone who isn't even around to laugh at you as you collapse on the finishing line.
3) I applaud the willingness to raise money and awareness for a charitable cause. However, if this was indeed the main motive, rather than a selfish need to feel a false sense of accomplishment, a simple donation request without attachment would do just fine. I don't understand why my friends think I am more likely to donate money because they promise to torture themselves for a few hours.
I once offered to match the total amount raised, if my friend returned the sponsor money and didn't run the marathon. I even told her I'd throw in an extra GBP20. She ran anyway.
I give monetary support to a Girls' School in Rajasthan. It is a fantastic cause where every cent goes towards building a brighter future for a few hundred girls otherwise condemned to a poverty-stricken and illiterate life. If anyone would like to give a donation, feel free to get in touch.
I promise I will not run, climb, trek or in any other way physically exert myself just because I'm passing on your money.
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