The connections began impacting myself and my family. Soon after I began The World in My Backyard project, I realized meeting new people for the project was providing me with more insight into life than just learning about world cultures, life journeys and Seattleites. She continues to farm to this day at the age of 63, but now just sells at Pike’s Place Market and the University Market.” When I was in high school and college, myself and my siblings would help her and she could go to more markets. She started growing vegetables but then, after she saw someone growing flowers, she started to grow them too. King County gave land in Woodinville to immigrants. My father was one of the first people to be involved in the project. In the mid-1980’s, King County instituted the IndoChinese Farm Project to provide a vehicle for refugees to earn incomes through farming. All different Laotian ethnicities gathered there. Eventually the Arch Bishop asked him to work at Our Lady of Mt. He was volunteering to help the Hmong people in Seattle and surrounding cities, it was a natural role for him. I think my father worked in a manufacturing facility for a while, then a grocery store. But my heart kept tugging at my head telling it that it WAS important and this was an experience of a lifetime. Even though you think this is important, what could ever come of it? Here you go again, wasting time and not making money…” The reasons not to go were endless in my mind. How does this fit into the work you are doing? Maybe people are right, you need to pick one thing and focus on it…you are always doing too many things and they don’t seem to go together (but in my head I see them all connected:) You are being selfish leaving your family and work to travel to a place you have already visited. And one that never could have happened had I listened to my head telling me, “You are too busy with other work to leave. One that only happened because I sat with my kids at a lazy Susan communal table during dim sum rush hour and talked with a woman and her daughter 8 years ago. How lucky was I to have had this opportunity? One that I never could have imagined or orchestrated if I had tried. What a way to start a morning.Īs I said goodbye at the airport to this family who took me in as their own, my heart was so full. And now my mind was being opened further because of these moments above Luang Prabang. Over the past week, I have learned from his family’s culture, faith, resourcefulness, gratitude and what it means to be a true survivor.
#XEE HER HAWAII FACEBOOK FULL#
But because of one human connection in a remote mountain village in Laos, this wonderful Seattleite, who has helped countless Laos individuals and families since arriving in the city in 1980 was able to have a full life, ultimately touching mine. I had witnessed the negative aspects of missionary efforts and had become closed-minded to the idea that there were positive ones regarding foreigners evangelizing their faith. It is because of him that my family became Catholic.” I said, “It is because of Catholicism that your family is alive today?” He replied, “Yes.” In that moment my mind was opened to something that I held more negative thoughts than positive ones about, since the mid-90’s from time as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Lesotho. He said, “Yes, there was an Italian missionary in my village. I asked him if it was because of missionaries that he came to be connected with the school. Before diving into my past memories of this day, I will start with the ones that were created this morning before my flight out of Laos. Memories from today and past years are reminders to me to keep trying to push myself to follow my heart to push out my belief that human connection is what life is all about and we need to be intentional about making new connections outside of our comfortable bubbles. As I scrolled through it became very clear that 1.11 is a magical day where my courage to try, my love of people and my desire to experience new things instead of listening to advice, guidance or misgivings of others allows me to discover the beauty, strength and joy of the human spirit.
#XEE HER HAWAII FACEBOOK FREE#
I linked into the free WiFi, opened up Facebook and at the top of my feed was my FB memories. It did not hit me until the middle of the day when, after landing in Bangkok, enroute home from 8 days without connectivity traveling through northern Laos. January 11th…I am realizing 1.11 is a special day in my life when my heart, mind and soul is fueled by the power and inspiration of human connection as well as my decisions to take follow my heart not my head.
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