Can you hear me now, now, NOW?

"A person's a person, no matter how small."
~ Horton the Elephant

Yesterday, my yoga teacher began class by saying, "if we listen to our bodies when they whisper, we won't have to hear them scream." That phrase swirled around in my head as I practiced my deep breathing. I started to think of all the words you could substitute for "bodies"---children, to-do lists, tea pots. As I twisted myself into different shapes, those words drifted down into my heart. Here is how my heart translated them, "if we listen to our world when it whispers, we won't have to hear it scream." I am always amazed at how our world pulls together when some catastrophic event occurs. We all put aside our differences to roll up our sleeves, reach into our pockets, and open our hearts. We respond well to screams.
The authors of Half the Sky write that "39,000 baby girls die annually in China because they don't receive medical care." Do we hear them? Unicef reports that "A woman in sub-Saharan Africa has a 1 in 16 chance of dying in pregnancy or childbirth." Do we hear them? Partners in Health estimates that "Every year, more than 10 million children in developing countries die before reaching their fifth birthday." Do we hear them?
I hope, as a world, we can become better listeners. I hope more of us begin to hear the whispers of those in need before they have to scream, whether they are in Haiti, New Orleans, China, sub-Saharan Africa, or our own backyard.

I've Come a Long Way, Baby

“Listen to the mustn'ts, child. Listen to the don'ts. Listen to the shouldn'ts, the impossibles, the won'ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me... Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.”
Shel Silverstein

I often ask myself how a southern girl raised on cold coca colas, central ac, and mosquito repellent ended up living in a place where folks cross country ski to school in winter and wear fleece to the swimming pool in July. This morning, I woke up wondering how I ended up living who I am instead of where I am. I can pinpoint on a map my journey from the bayous of North Louisiana to the mountains of Central Oregon. My personal journey has been much more circuitous, full of scenic detours, idol wanderings and the occasional dead end. I could have taken an easier route or maybe just followed directions better, but getting lost was part of the adventure that has led me to who I am. If we just go through life we may as well be on a treadmill. We have to grow through life and that sometimes means growing pains. I am who I am because I didn't follow directions or stay between the lines. I took leaps of faith and occasionally fell down---hard. But I got back up and kept going, and I will keep on going and growing through my life. I will listen to all of the well-intentioned words of warning and wisdom, but I will listen most closely to my heart because... anything can happen, child. Anything can be. I am a Southern born Southwestern girl living in the Great Northwest and heading to Uganda. I've come a long way, but I've become a long way too.

Seeds

"Action speaks louder than words but not nearly as often."
Mark Twain

I was out tree gazing in the woods the other day, and it struck me that each of the tall pines towering above me began as a tiny seed. That's a lot of growth potential. I returned home to emails and facebook messages, a few containing political jokes about Haiti and parodies of Hitler. It really made me sad. Those messages reminded me of all the tiny seeds we toss about absentmindedly everyday. I am all for freedom of speech, but I think we should be mindful of the seeds we plant with our words. They have tremendous growth potential as well. What kind of garden do we really want to grow? Victor Frankel, a psychiatrist who survived the Nazi concentration camps and published more than 30 books on theoretical and clinical psychology, was fond of saying, "I recommend that the Statue of Liberty on the East Coast be supplemented with a Statue of Responsibility on the West Coast."

As I travel far from home, I hope to be a conscious gardener.

Small Things

Mother Theresa said "we can do no great things, just small things with great love."

I received a box of baby blankets this week from a yoga studio in Minnesota, which I offered to take to the birthing center in Uganda. When I first saw the big box, I thought, "there goes my plan to pack light." Then, I realized that packing light isn't always the goal. Sometimes we need to see just how much we can carry on. These baby blankets aren't going to solve any world problems. Each baby who receives one is not guaranteed to live a healthy and happy life. But wrapping a newborn child in love is one small thing that we can do to start creating a better world. I'm off to find another duffle.

How I Became a Bull Fighter & Blogger...

Hemmingway wrote "Nobody ever lives their life all the way up except bull-fighters."

I created Witness Your World because I want to live my life all the way up. My first Witness Your World project has been to raise funds and awareness for issues facing women and children in Uganda. In three weeks, I will be traveling there with Off the Mat, Into the World to help build a birthing center and schoolhouse outside of Kampala. This blog is my way of sharing the experience with my family and friends who believed in me and inspired me to step into the ring. Let the blogs begin. Olé.