Following a full on two months worth of packing/moving/wrapping up work, not to mention a full two days worth of last minute preparations, I'm finally as ready as I'll ever be for this year's East African adventure. I won't lie and say it was done gracefully...those of you who know me best (okay, even a little bit at all) wouldn't be fooled anyway. But I have a passport with a visa in hand, a full year's worth of anti-malarial Rx, a World Health Organization immunization card that is beginning to look like a 10,000 word scroll, and perhaps most importantly: enough books to cover me at least on the flight(s) to Arusha, Tanzania. My to-do-before-I-go list perpetually has 50 things on it, regardless of how many I scratch off, but I figure if you don't need to wind sprint to the finish line then the race you're in just isn't worth running.
Of those 50 and counting to-do's though, figuring out how to accommodate the many thoughtful requests I've gotten that I send updates on my adventures and whereabouts in a way that is consistent with my love-to-adventure but hate-being-the-center-of-attention persona was near the top of the list. I decided to go with a blog (still a terrible word..) because it's simple to use which allows me to use my brain space on the less-technical things I prefer to think and know about.
I also went with a blog because it allows you all to contribute comments and content, which was about the only way I could find peace with sharing my usually pretty shy thoughts (lol - family, close friends and the employer I've had for the last two years will likely beg to differ). In thinking about who I would share it with, I figured this was as good an opportunity as any to ask each of you to contribute to a project I've been kicking around ideas on for a while. I have the good fortune of having an incredible number of incredible people in my life. They are people who do good and who do it well, whether their platform be their workplace(s), their volunteer work, or their relationships with friends/family/the world around them. Each is guided by a different set of core beliefs that weaves its way into nearly everything they do. It matters a lot to me that this blog be less about my personal adventures and more about the people I meet along the way, as well as about the people who I have the great luck to have in my life already. What I'm looking for from each of you, and which I'll add to with the stories of people I meet in my travels, is essentially a short story that explains one (or more) belief/value/principle that drives/guides/inspires you. You can email this to me at marygraceweber@gmail.com, and if you're okay with it, I'd love to post it here (if you'd rather it not be posted but still want to write one, I'd love to read it and am happy to keep it to myself). I plan to write mine at the end of this adventure (assuming, of course that this adventure has an end - should it not, then I'll just pick a good time and start writing), but in case examples of the sort of thing I'm looking for would be helpful, a few teaser concepts for what I'll eventually write will look something like "I believe in the power of a good story. It is true that a picture is worth a thousand words....but a short story well-told is worth at least 5,000." or "I believe in taking leaps of faith, because even if you don't know where you'll end, you can be confident that it will be on your feet..." or "I believe in the importance of Family - in loving your own unconditionally and in adding on to it wherever you go" or "I believe in trusting my instincts. Unless of course, they are my directional instincts, which never fail to get me lost, even with map in hand." What you provide doesn't need to be deep; it doesn't need to be the most important belief you have, or even one that you'll always believe; it can be funny or sad or serious; but what it can't be is shy - I expect solidarity here...if I'm sharing my life adventures with all of you, I'm expecting to hear from you too :) And lastly, as credit where credit is due: this idea comes from a podcast I like called This I Believe. Check it out if you'd like some inspiration, just keep in mind when you're writing that the "This I Believe" name is copyrighted by the organization, so avoid using it in the essays you email to me (that said, I'd encourage you to submit your own to the official creator of this idea - you can do so on their website)
Okay! I think that's that! Now off to some more last minute productivity!
Na upendo,
MaryGrace
Of those 50 and counting to-do's though, figuring out how to accommodate the many thoughtful requests I've gotten that I send updates on my adventures and whereabouts in a way that is consistent with my love-to-adventure but hate-being-the-center-of-attention persona was near the top of the list. I decided to go with a blog (still a terrible word..) because it's simple to use which allows me to use my brain space on the less-technical things I prefer to think and know about.
I also went with a blog because it allows you all to contribute comments and content, which was about the only way I could find peace with sharing my usually pretty shy thoughts (lol - family, close friends and the employer I've had for the last two years will likely beg to differ). In thinking about who I would share it with, I figured this was as good an opportunity as any to ask each of you to contribute to a project I've been kicking around ideas on for a while. I have the good fortune of having an incredible number of incredible people in my life. They are people who do good and who do it well, whether their platform be their workplace(s), their volunteer work, or their relationships with friends/family/the world around them. Each is guided by a different set of core beliefs that weaves its way into nearly everything they do. It matters a lot to me that this blog be less about my personal adventures and more about the people I meet along the way, as well as about the people who I have the great luck to have in my life already. What I'm looking for from each of you, and which I'll add to with the stories of people I meet in my travels, is essentially a short story that explains one (or more) belief/value/principle that drives/guides/inspires you. You can email this to me at marygraceweber@gmail.com, and if you're okay with it, I'd love to post it here (if you'd rather it not be posted but still want to write one, I'd love to read it and am happy to keep it to myself). I plan to write mine at the end of this adventure (assuming, of course that this adventure has an end - should it not, then I'll just pick a good time and start writing), but in case examples of the sort of thing I'm looking for would be helpful, a few teaser concepts for what I'll eventually write will look something like "I believe in the power of a good story. It is true that a picture is worth a thousand words....but a short story well-told is worth at least 5,000." or "I believe in taking leaps of faith, because even if you don't know where you'll end, you can be confident that it will be on your feet..." or "I believe in the importance of Family - in loving your own unconditionally and in adding on to it wherever you go" or "I believe in trusting my instincts. Unless of course, they are my directional instincts, which never fail to get me lost, even with map in hand." What you provide doesn't need to be deep; it doesn't need to be the most important belief you have, or even one that you'll always believe; it can be funny or sad or serious; but what it can't be is shy - I expect solidarity here...if I'm sharing my life adventures with all of you, I'm expecting to hear from you too :) And lastly, as credit where credit is due: this idea comes from a podcast I like called This I Believe. Check it out if you'd like some inspiration, just keep in mind when you're writing that the "This I Believe" name is copyrighted by the organization, so avoid using it in the essays you email to me (that said, I'd encourage you to submit your own to the official creator of this idea - you can do so on their website)
Okay! I think that's that! Now off to some more last minute productivity!
Na upendo,
MaryGrace
You are an inspiration to many MaryGrace. Enjoy your journey and safe travels.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing a parent can ask for in life is happy kids, chasing their dreams, with passion. Chase on, MG. Chase on. And rememeber to call your mother every now and then. LOL.
ReplyDeleteMPW