I've been complaining about something.... A LOT....lately. I've been consumed in this complaint and in myself and feeling victim-ish and generally deflated.
The Universe is so very brilliant sometimes...well, all the time. The Universe has a way of holding a mirror straight up to your face at the most perfect moments possible.
I've had Half the Sky waiting in my DVR list for over a week. PBS seems to be running it at very obscure hours (hmmmmmm?) and I've had to set the DVR in order to watch the program.
This evening, I sat down, in the comfort of my home, in a brand new fluffy bed, surrounded by all the belongings my education, my profession, my career allow me to have and I watched women half way across the world die trying to give birth to babies because their genitals are so mutilated they suffer horrendous after effects. They also die from complications related to pregnancy that are simple to care for because health care is not even a consideration. I watched young girls sold into sex trafficking simply because they were born into it, as were their mothers, grandmothers, etc. I heard a woman say she loved her man, they all loved their men and their men only lived to beat them. And if they weren't man enough to beat them, their brothers would. And when she tried to go home to her parents, they sent her back because being "beaten" is just part of being a woman in their society; it is expected. I saw a young lady yanked out of the ONLY hope she had, her school, in order to move to another village where she would certainly become a sex provider. I saw a woman who was beaten, repeatedly, to within an inch of her life and expected to serve 20-30 men A DAY...A DAY!
I've been complaining about something.... A LOT....lately. I've been consumed in this complaint and in myself and feeling victim-ish and generally deflated.
Reading that opening line disgusts me tonight. It becomes particularly more disgusting when I consider one woman who almost lost both her eyes in a beating is now the leader of a village of women and their children where they are trying to set up a society of their own by creating beaded pieces of high queen art. I saw a woman, who is still a prostitute, hand over her daughter to an activist who educates young women...because THAT IS HOW MUCH SHE LOVES HER DAUGHTER! Her daughter intends to become a lawyer. I saw women turn 50 cents into a small empire through micro financing. I saw a nurse-midwife, herself the victim of genital mutilation, open a hospital for women who suffer sequela of mutilation. She also delivers babies under oppressive circumstances. But beyond that, she has taught local women to become midwives and advocates against mutilation. I saw a woman, living with HIV, supporting five children through her work as a seamstress. And each of her children are successfully enrolled in school.
I've been complaining about something.... A LOT....lately. I've been consumed in this complaint and in myself and feeling victim-ish and generally deflated.
Really, Patty? Really?
From the moment I open my eyes until the moment I fall into bed I am living the dream. Truly, living the dream. Are we better, are we smarter, are we more deserving than any of these women, these people, our fellow brothers and sisters?
No, we are just luckier.
And do I take that luck for granted? You bet I do.
But, tomorrow, will be just a little bit different for me.
I fully intend to purchase the book Half the Sky just as soon as I hit "publish" on this post. As a human, on this earth, we owe it to each other to be informed, to be aware, to be empowered and to be a force for change.
I've certainly got a lot of thinking to do. I am going to watch the other two hours later this week. I would like to inquire about the products created by these women. If I receive any information I will share it forward.
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