Let me clear my throat

I first found out about World Pulse through Her Zimbabwe and thought, this looks interesting let me find out more. When I did look into it, I was excited to tap into a global community that was verbalising so many issues that affect our societies today.

There are so many things that we see daily and turn a blind eye towards, even as our hearts bleed and break. The friend with the constant black eye…The lady from down the street who used to walk so proudly, her head held high, now shuffling and downcast…Your cousin who married a 13 year-old. Your aunt who has nine children (all daughters) but is pregnant again, frail as she is. Desperate for a son, the heir her husband wants...The rape of the neighbour’s daughter, innocence lost at age five…The whispers about the school head who says obviously those boys are lying, out to ruin his ‘good’ name.

It’s not our business it seems…oh, but it is. Every one of plays a part in what’s wrong with the world today. We need to stop accepting mediocrity in our families and communities; pretending that all is well.

I realised that I am no longer content to merely watch the world go by. To accept what is, even though it shouldn’t be. We are all activists in our own right, but are we making the choice to bring about positive change. It’s not somebody/everybody else’s problem. It’s our s too.

Having worked in the humanitarian sector for several years, I am able to highlight issues and bring about some positive changes through my work, but of course in a voice that is not my own. Like many others, I have been often been hesitant to use my voice, scared that my words would be judged and deemed unworthy. I have often poured my heart out, venting my frustrations, on the computer screen and on paper. And it felt so good. But what has happened to those words...Delete button and the bin…Wasted and impotent.

We hesitate to put ourselves out there because we are afraid of being vulnerable. Many times we seek the approval of others to validate ourselves, but when you commit to expressing yourself; you take ownership of your feelings, your ideas. You acknowledge that you do not need anyone to allow you to speak, you stop holding yourself back, you are no longer afraid. What you are really saying is ‘I am here, I matter, and I belong’. What I have to say may not be particularly profound but I choose to speak and I deserve to be heard.

I have always wanted to write and have always believed that our thoughts have potential, but once they become words, spoken or written, they either become a gift or a curse to the world. As such they must be chosen wisely and used effectively.

Individual voice? Powerful.

Collective voice? Explosive and world changing.

Permission to speak?...Granted.