Day 1 -- how the Missionairies of Charity (M/C) began

If there had been a Twitter from M/C Day 1 (October 1950), it might read like this --

Day 1: One donor. Two souls.

After twenty years as a teacher and principal at a Catholic girls high school in Calcutta -- neat, clean, professional middle-class -- Mother Teresa had a vision. A vision to serve the "poorest of the poor," in a world where human waste runs down streets to open sewers (think "Slumdog Millionaire" and "Angela's Ashes.")

With her vision -- she asked for, and received permission from, the Vatican to begin her religious order. And so --

Day 1: One donor. Two souls.

Two clients. Not 20, or 200, or 2,000. Just two.

Today -- 520 M/C offices in 100 countries. Following the break-through 1974 BBC series about the M/C by a self-admitted "dispirited war correspondent" in need of renewal.

The journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step. A balance of resources, belief, and faith.