You missed the point.

By now we've pretty much all participated in the ALS ice bucket challenge (yes including me!). And I'm sure you've also seen all the articles roaming around the interwebs criticizing said challenge. When I first read them, I was angry. But then slowly, it just turned to sadness.

Are those critics so starved for attention that THIS is what they choose to write about? We get it. You don't believe in stem cell research. You don't want to donate your money to an organization that could possibly benefit from stem cell research. But let me tell you something.

YOU MISSED THE POINT.

The point of the challenge wasn't to increase the amount of stem cell research. The point wasn't the unreal amounts of money that had been donated to this very worthy cause (although that's an added bonus). The point, was to raise awareness about a horrible disease. And bravo to whoever started it, and used social media as their platform. I'd much rather see people dumping buckets of ice water on their head then all the other horrible things that are sometimes highlighted.

NO ONE WAS FORCING YOU TO DONATE.

Don't believe in stem cell research? GOOD FOR YOU! You know what you could've done? You could've donated to someone who is suffering from ALS to help them pay for their medical bills. Still not comfortable with that? Donate to a charity of your choice. I saw plenty of people that politely decided to switch gears and donate to a cause that hit a little closer to home. And you know what? People just kept taking it further. They had already donated to ALS, and then donated AGAIN in honor of their friend's loved one.

The amount of awareness that this has raised, is priceless. There are so many bad things happening in the world today with an infinite amount of critics. Let's not start criticizing those who are trying to do something positive, because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.