Pieces of Me

I stared at the shattered pieces of my soul that lay on the floor at my feet. Who am I now? I thought. He stole me from me and now I am no longer. What was left of me crumbled to pieces and was thrown out with the trash that night.

The next morning, to my surprise, there were a few fragments left that seemed to be calling to me. Here you are! You’re still here! Don’t forget about me! I turned my back and walked away.

But something wouldn’t let me. Without consciously wanting to, my voice emerged and refused to be silenced. So I spoke, and I was heard! And my voice, along with the voices of others inspired the fight in me and for a moment, I stood tall. Thank you World Pulse (see week 2’s post).

The greatest challenge I have in my community is getting people to speak up. I too could barely speak after the atrocities of last week. But I spoke anyway, and today I feel a million times stronger. Now more than ever I know the power of our voices, a million voices strong.

When a woman is abused, psychologically, physically, emotionally and/or spiritually, it is hard to find the strength to speak up. When a child is suicidal, and there is no one around them that they trust to bare their soul to, where do they turn? When First Nations have had their lands stolen, and their spirits broken, but society twists these stories to make them seem like drunks who got what they deserve, World Pulse offers a platform to the truth.

Today in class we discussed the representations of Africa in the media and passions were ignited. It was hard to get a chance to speak because of how many people had something to say. Finally, at the end of the class I couldn’t take it any longer: “Wait! I HAVE to interrupt. If you want real stories, from real people, that will give you an image of the world unlike anywhere in the media, then I know where to go!” And of course, I told them about World Pulse.

I’m still shaken from last week. I am questioning who I am and what I’m really about, but there is one thing that has become so very clear. We must speak up. It’s the only way to heal. We must join hands and declare “We will never be silenced again! We will band together and heal our world and you cannot stop us! We will stand strong and firm until justice prevails and we won’t stop until everyone’s voice is heard!” That is the power of the pulse. Our greatest challenge is also our greatest victory.