Seeker

This is day 4 of my Lent series of finding reasons to be grateful each day. If you read my post yesterday about being grateful for facial tissues, you will know I had a cold. This was very short-lived - only 48 hours - all symptoms gone. I now feel well. So today I am grateful for a healthy immune system. I'm also grateful for those who have prayed for me and sent good wishes. I suppose I should also be grateful for all those other cold viruses I have successfully fought off over the years, that my body's defence system has remembered.  The illustration is of a leukocyte, a white blood cell, which plays an essential part in the human immune system. Never mind that this one looks pink. Mine seem to have been working hard and well. Thank God for a healthy immune system, not everyone is so blessed. Image Credit: wellcome images on Flickr, CC License

About 3 children die every minute as a result of diarrhoea. That's 4,100 every day.  That's about 1.5 million children each year. This is the fact highlighted on this 2nd day of a week for children in Christian Aid's Lent ' Count Your Blessings' calendar. According to the World Health Organisation diarrhoea is the second leading cause of deaths in children under 5 years, accounting for 1 in 5 child deaths. The scandal is that most of these are preventable through clean water, sanitation, simple treatment measures etc.  It has taken me about 15 minutes to prepare this post. In that time around the world about 45 children will have died of diarrhoea and many of those need not have died. Christian Aid suggests you give £1 if you have not been ill in the past month. I haven't been ill, so that's another £1 in the kitty for Christian Aid.  Image of clean water from PhotoRack