Coming Home to World Pulse, again!

It’s the morning of December 21.

I woke up at 6.44, ready to jump off the bed, rush into the shower, get dressed, grab a quick breakfast, start my laptop, open my zoom account, admit my 7-member group of journalist-mentees from different regions of the world, hit the record button and start my briefing on the 15th UN Biodiversity conference (just concluded in Montreal).

This has been my morning routine for the past 2 weeks. And before that, it had been quite the same except that the meetings I did were with colleagues from different countries and the topics were different environmental projects I/we are part of.

But the morning rush was a constant common.

However, today, after that first impulse to jump out of the bed, I realized, I didn’t have to. I looked around, saw the wall at my feet with dozens of little artifacts, and the glimpse of a snow-capped Christmas tree outside the window next. And I realized, it’s a morning like no other: there were no meetings lined up, no need for a hurried breakfast, no rush to ‘bundle up’ before stepping into the cold street to attend a press meeting. No lunch to cook, no dinner to fix, no laundry, no nothing.

My only to-do task of the day was going to be meet the person in the next room – my host who brought me here yesterday, opened a room for me (‘this is where you stay”), showed me the refrigerator (‘eat whatever you want’) and gave me a key (in case you want to go out’). Having hour-long chats with that person is all I do today. All day long.  It feels unbelievable that I get to be this free. It’s also unbelievable that I am here with that person whom I have known for almost 8 years now – maybe even more- and have dreamed of meeting in person one day and that day is finally here. She is Tamarack Verral (Tam) – perhaps the most well- known face of the World Pulse community.

It's the first time that I met a good woman abroad welcoming me into her land, her fold. I have been lucky to meet so many other: Paulina Lawsin of Philippines is one of them, Emma (Immah Amoit) of Kenya, Usha KC and Nilima Rat of Nepal, Leina (Chi Yvonne) of Cameroon, Tanzina Rahman of Bangladesh - the list is long and each of these women is remarkable in her own right and in her kindness. Knowing each one has a true blessing.

What sets Tamarack Verral apart is the fact that she is oldest of them all (the reason why she is often called ‘Mama Tam’ by many) and richest of them all also in wisdom and in experience. As I bask in the joy of being in her home and in her presence, I listen to her fascinating stories, feeling her wonderful experiences and I look forward to taking some of her wisdom with me when I return home.

So far, I have gotten a few glimpses into her long, rich past as a food grower, a teacher – a job she still does, a human rights activist (what makes her a highly respected leader in the World Pulse community) and a patron of arts – reflected in the numerous artifacts she has in ever nook and corner of her house. These are arts created by women including her mother and each of these pieces has a story attached to it. In essence, Tam’s whole house is like a mini museum where you feel personal stories of a hundred women artists.

But there’s so much more to explore: her travels, her relations with indigenous women activists and film makers and her visions of the future where every woman has more power to bring changes. I’ll share with you as I learn about those.

 But right now, I guess I should just say that because of Tamarack, I am back to posting a new write up here after years. In the few hours that we have spent together, we have already talked about so many sisters – Paulina, Arre Echi, Regina, Basudha, Minakshi, Olutosin, Olanike, Busayo, Celine, Urmila, Kirthi, Sister Zeph, Corine, Dawn and of course Jensine. It’s like coming back home and joining the sisters around the fire stove on a cold wintry night. I should thank Tam and every one of you for this.

And I should also repeat what I written many years ago right on this platform, “when World Pulse women hold each other’s hands, magic happens.”