"Today is about celebrating the life-giving forces that surround us. It's about strength, support, encouragement, love. Some of us have mothers that embody all these qualities, mothers that never leave our side. Some of us have lost our mothers. Some of us never really had our mothers in the first place. But, whatever the relationship with your mother is, if nothing else, we can appreciate that it is because of her that we are here right now. But today is about mothers everywhere. In India, many will celebrate Mother Ganga (the Ganges River), whose constant flow sustains life throughout the country. Let's honor mothers in all forms and aspects of our lives. Perhaps these are sisters or teachers or friends. The people in our lives that love us for who we are, yet still encourage us to become who we want to be. And also, the mothers in ourselves. The part of ourselves that nurtures new ideas, that gives a piece of ourself to others expecting no return, that loves fully and unconditionally. And let's not forget the Earth. There's a reason why we call her Mother Earth, today we celebrate that. We celebrate the world we live in and the resources that sustain us, let us grow, support us each day."
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| Photo Credit: Karen Clark |
I drew in a deep breath, rooting down into my yoga mat as our instructor spoke. This morning was one of those gorgeous Spring-has-finally-arrived days in Colorado. Bluebird sky, sun dancing along the lake, dry roads and snow-capped mountains. I woke up with the intention of spending the day with my mom. And now here I was, thinking about a million other mothers in a million different places. The girls that World Camp works with, who will one day be mothers themselves. The incredible women I've met around the world and how they've shaped who I am.
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| Photo Credit: Katy Lackey |
We often only think about our own mother on Mother's Day. We celebrate our mother, but maybe what we should be celebrating is what's behind the title, beneath the figure.To be honest, I never thought of taking the day to honor the Earth. Wasn't that what Earth Day was for? However, as the instructor's words washed over me, the idea of life-giving forces sunk in. Perhaps influenced by our class focus on hip openers for the day. Nonetheless, I was brought back to what was quite possibly the best class I had in college. A philosophy course where, on the first day, the professor proposed two questions:
Who were you given to love?
Are you living the life that wants to live in you?
Interesting, because I think these questions relate to this idea of what is life-giving, of what sustains and, at the same time, moves us to become who we are, to become a part of the world. Who has ended up in our lives, for whatever reason, that is life-giving? Those people that stand by us or stand up for us, that encourage and support us? Are the choices we make and the lives we lead life-giving? Do they inspire creativity and breed possibility? The answers to these questions fall back on the qualities we use to describe "mothers." And that is certainly something to celebrate.
So today, we celebrate life-giving mothers. Our founders' mothers, for believing in their kids' crazy idea to build this organization. Our students' mothers who carry heavy loads and fully give each day to their families. Our coordinators' mothers for letting us go again and again to work in-country. Mothers around the world that fight for their child's right to live, even if they were the ones who passed HIV to them in the first place. The Amayis (John and Ngoni's wives) who support our program and make lunches for our students. Our home-stay mothers, who graciously take volunteers in as their own, if only for a night. Female teachers who are often mothers themselves, mothers to their students, and mothers to all of us in helping us question and learn. And to all the future mothers in our female empowerment groups for their strength, openness and hope for the next generation.
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| Photo Credit: Rachel Dudasik |
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| Photo Credit: Price Massey |
Submitted by: Katy Lackey, WC Coordinator
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