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An artwork by A Curious TractorConfessions, edition 01

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Friday

We played the week back.

Here is what came through the gold phone this week. Every message anonymous, every one shared with consent, every one a real voice. Not a survey. Not an acquittal. The honest version, said out loud.

Messages, in sequence

  1. money
    “My confession is, please just ask us. Genuinely ask. Not with a corporate brochure or a glossy annual report. Tell us about the people, the animals, the places, the ecosystems you're actually saving. Show us the real story. Not talk about the organisation. And please don't be shy about it. When you make the ask human and honest, the answer is always yes.”
  2. power
    “Hello, this is a message for philanthropy. I just think you've got a really difficult job, and you do it really difficultly. I think if you just gave up on thinking that you knew what you were doing, then you'd actually do a much better job. Just give the money to the people who actually know what is going on, and then you might actually have a better job. That's all.”
  3. hope
    “So, my confession. It's not really a confession. It's to say that I wish you didn't have to exist. I'm incredibly thankful that there are people who believe in philanthropy and put time and effort and soul into it. Our society benefits so hugely from it. But I wish you didn't have to exist. I wish we lived in a world where capitalism didn't drive us, where governments were able to support everyone, where equity was just a given. But it's not. And so, until then, we have amazing philanthropic organisations and givers and providers, those who pour their heart and soul into ensuring our world is still providing the best opportunity to those who don't have it. So I guess, yeah, my takeaway is just a huge thank you. But I wish you didn't have to exist. I love this idea, and love following all of those that are in the post. So thank you. Thank you, and keep being inspiring.”
  4. hope
    “I wish that I could do more. I love working in this sector, being able to make a change. But I also hate it, because it's opened my eyes up to this huge, gigantic need. And I struggle to sleep every night, knowing that while I'm making a difference, it's only a very small drop in a very big ocean.”

What it said

  1. Money

    The loudest thread was money, and not the way you might expect. Nobody asked for more of it. They asked us to be honest about it. One caller said philanthropy has lost its way, that it tends to be about the money now, when the word itself just means love of humanity. Another put it plainly: please just ask us. Genuinely ask. Not with a glossy brochure. And then this, which we have not stopped thinking about: when you make the ask human and honest, the answer is always yes.

  2. Power

    Then there was power, and one voice was blunt about it. You have got a really difficult job, the caller said, and you do it really difficultly. If you gave up on thinking you already knew what you were doing, you would do it better. Just give the money to the people who actually know what is going on.

  3. Hope

    And underneath all of it, hope, the kind that aches. One person rang to say it is not really a confession, it is to say I wish you didn’t have to exist. Thank you for pouring your heart into a world that still needs you. But I wish we lived somewhere equity was just a given, and you were not necessary at all.

That is the honest version. Be more human. Trust the people closest to the work. And keep going, while quietly hoping for the day the work is done.

Listen to the voices

The line is still open.

Next week’s tape needs your voice. Say the thing you usually keep tidy.

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