Stay in action
So it has taken me almost a year to finally put up our documentary project “I am strong” on Indiegogo. Boy, I tell ya it was like wading through molasses! As I think about this period it makes me think about a quote I saw recently by Thomas Edison, “opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” I’ll let you meditate on that for a while and I’ll encourage you to stay committed to your goals and passions. I hear the words of one of my mentors reminding me to, ‘stay in action, stay in action’ and I pass on those wise words to you….stay in action!
It feels real good to finally mark this as complete on my Toodledo list. Yay! Check out our project on Indiegogo and please support us and spread the word.
http://igg.me/p/43910?a=261183
Connections
Last weekend Khatundi and I were among the 2000 people who attended the 3rd annual Women in the World Summit in New York. Organized by Tina Brown, Editor in Chief of Newsweek and The Daily Beast, the summit was a three-day, well-orchestrated stream of passionate world-figures discussing a range of important women’s issues.
My favorite moments were the Mellody Hobson interview of Valerie Jarrett, the Charlie Rose interview of Madeleine Albright and the panel discussion about forced marriage. I was in awe of the bravery of Jasvinder Sanghera as she spoke about escaping a forced marriage in the United Kingdom, and the incredible strength of heart it takes to withstand being alienated by one’s family simply for wanting to make your own decisions.
This was my first time seeing Hillary Clinton in person and my eyes welled up with tears. Wait, I had tears in my eyes the first time I saw Wendy Williams so maybe it meant nothing. Maybe I’m just a weirdly emotional person. No, I’ve decided that it meant everything to see the former first lady, former senator, current Secretary of State and long time champion of women’s causes say, “we all need to be part of the solution and as fearless as the women’s stories we’ve heard.” It was riveting.
Right before she spoke a young girl from Nepal named Suma Tharu sang. Suma had worked in an abusive system of indentured servitude called Kamlari from the age of six to twelve. She was rescued and finally allowed to go to school through a program called Room to Read, and she’s featured in a Richard Robins documentary called 10×10, 10 stories of 10 girls from 10 countries (I hope I got that right). Suma took the stage to sing a poignant song and undoubtedly moved everyone in the audience.
After the summit we found an Indian restaurant and we were seated in a tight corner next to a table of seven women. They were from the summit, for sure, and something about one of the women was very familiar. It was Suma’s translator! So the young woman sitting closest, but with her back to us had to be none other than…Suma. I had a gazillion questions I wanted to ask her about this Kamlari system, and I was starting to feel weirdly possessive, like when I met the young woman who’d flown in from Kabul. I pulled out my iphone so I could send her an email and solidify our new best friend status, 30 seconds after she introduced herself. As she talked I envisioned my trip to Afghanistan and wearing a chic hijab. Anyways…
Gone was Suma’s ornate colorful costume, and in its place, all black shirt, pants, and flats, the perfect backdrop from which to display her beautiful spirit. We said, “you go, no you go” until Khatundi got up and spoke to the women. She gave them some background about the Yayaz Project and then turned directly to Suma and thanked her for courageously sharing her story with the world. She told her that hearing stories like hers inspires her to keep working to improve the lives of young girls, and as Suma listened to the foreign words being translated, a big smile slowly spread over her face. Connection. It’s that intimate, priceless moment when one heart meets another in complete understanding. She looked over at me and smiled again and I was glad that she could take our gratitude back with her to Nepal.
Ultimately for me, Women in the World was about the many connecting points between women of varying backgrounds. Connecting points were made over and over as we listened to the speakers and engaged with other attendees. I left with a renewed spirit, and I left with the words of Hillary Clinton who closed the session by saying, “I hope that through your own activism you will leave here thinking about what you can do.’ I have, for sure.
Go.Forth.Serve!
I love that l have had several profound life lessons that have made me into who I am. As a high school student some fourteen years ago in Boston I remember this lesson as if it happened yesterday.
I was waiting for the bus on a cold Massachusetts day with an elderly gentleman who seemed to be either intoxicated or high. He was disheveled and rather homeless looking and for some reason he had difficulty maintaining his balance so he was leaning against a newspaper stand. He kept sliding off of it and just when you thought he might fall he managed to swing himself back on top of the stand.
I watched him warily, my first instinct was to help him, but I was thrown off by his appearance and unsure if my help would have been welcomed. I am still humbled by what happened next. A car drove by slowly and an older man rolled down his window and admonished me. He said something like, “don’t just stand there, do something!” I am sure he said more but that’s all I could remember.
I soon spun into action and when the bus arrived the bus driver called the dispatcher and help was on the way. This man needed help and I was too concerned about myself to help him. It’s as if I needed someone to give me permission to help this man. Since that day, I really revel at every opportunity to help and I try to deal with that inner voice that tells me ‘you’re gonna look stupid’. Our perceptions of people become real roadblocks, just like I perceived the man to be drunk when he probably had a serious medical situation. Many of these perceptions are based on stereotypes that end up preventing us from being truly compassionate and loving beings.
We are doing important work in Kenya, mentoring the youth and we need your encouragement and support. Please be moved to act, with us or any other organization. There is so much need in the world and it seems that we are all standing on the sidelines waiting for something to happen that will push us into action. Well, here it goes: Go. Forth. Make a difference!
