Tough Choices

I have wanted to sponsor a child since my age was measured in single digits.

A few years ago, I started looking at various agencies through which I could sponsor a child. There are differences in the amounts you pay and exactly what it pays for; the main difference I remember now is that some agencies include religious instruction and others don't. There are probably also differences in what proportion of what you give gets eaten up by administrative costs, but I somehow had found an index of charitable organizations that rated them on factors like that and only really looked at ones with high scores. Anyway, I decided to look at them all again when I was ready to make the commitment.

Now I feel like my ability to do so is within seeing distance, so I find myself thinking about it again. The choice of which agency to go through is one I will take seriously and seems somewhat difficult not unmanageable. What seems more difficult is the choice of the child. Most of the sites allow you to search by location, sex, and age. But how in the world I am supposed to decide whether I would rather help a boy or a girl, or someone from Uganda or El Salvador?