The Kindness of Strangers

This week’s assignment sounds like my mom asking “What are you doing with your life? You will wake up in your 30s and realize you have nothing!” These are some seemingly harsh words from my mom, especially since I turn 30 next year April! The thing is, my vision for life is different from the vision she has for me. Her vision for me may be similar to the vision society has for me “be a good student, get a good job, marry, take one vacation a year, retire, die” all in all play by the rules and follow the status quo.

My vision for me is one of greatness, one of flexibility and always evolving and I believe I am putting those steps in place to accomplish this. In my Caribbean society, it is common for young people to still live at home whereas our American and European counterparts move out from early. While I play into that status quo and still live at home, I do own my own house and apartment which I rent out to tenants to cover the mortgage. See – I told you, I play by the rules – but then I add my twist to it. I had what society considered a “good job” – but my brain was dying, I worked there for 2 years, then I “fired my boss” … joined the organization as a member, and got elected on to the Board. Yes, I am now the boss of that “boss I fired”. Clearly, I like doing things that no one else really thought about doing just to see if they can be done. I work as a freelance consultant on different projects and recently opened a firm here in Barbados – an extension of a firm already in Trinidad for the last 15 years.

My vision for my life will affect my community and the world. I am a mentor right now for programs in Entrepreneurship in the high schools across the island, I am on the Advisory Council for the Barbados Youth Development Council – I like to share information and opportunities. I never hold on to stuff for myself, I would prefer 100 of my friends and acquaintances apply for an opportunity and “compete” against me and one of us get it, then I hold on to it and submit on my own and lose out to someone not in my circles at all! I am always volunteering in my community and as I strengthen my brand across the island of Barbados and the region – I do feel like a big fish in a small pond and I am looking to migrate to another country to continue developing myself and make an impact on a global scale. I have traveled extensively and have already done some work in Ghana with a Canadian non-governmental organization and I will continue to work on behalf of persons who have not had as much opportunities as I have…

Why do I want to be a VOF Correspondent? When I first heard about this program as I mentioned in an earlier post – I applied because this is what I do – I apply for things! I like the process of applying, of competing and of putting myself out there to be judged! If selected, then I get to learn something new about myself as well as the program that I am in. With World Pulse, I have always had aspirations of writing something – a book, a novella, something … perhaps this opportunity if it is meant to be will be what opens the doorways for me. I have published some articles in different magazines but I think I need the push, the next step … writing will allow me to continue doing what I do, being free, sharing my story and the story of others – and most importantly documenting it in a strategic way rather than simply emails home back to friends and family! I’ve already achieved part of my vision – believing once again in the kindness of strangers who have posted and shared from their hearts!