stories to tell

we people working in this field, we all have stories to tell
they are other people's stories, their life accounts and the things that happened to them

we hear them, the bravest among us directly from the person, the rest via other means
they are not easy lives, they are not easy stories to tell or hear, they are not easy to swallow

we store them in our memory, voluntary and involuntarily and don't let them out often
they are real stories about humanity, the worst and best woven together irremediably

we recount those other people's life stories when we feel our audience will understand
they are inevitably, those working in this field with stories to tell

toujours

Hier le moineau s'est envolé. Porté par la fragilité de ses ailes.

Repose-toi bien moineau, ou que tu arrives. Ici, on t’aimera toujours.

on age

getting old is most certainly not synonym with becoming a grown up

Government Led “Coup D'état” against Human Rights Organisation

Hargeysa, Somaliland, October 27, 2007 (SomaliLand Times) – [..] Shuro-net is the biggest human rights organization in the country, […] An organization of this size and magnitude holding an extraordinary AGM is bound to attract the attention and interest of the government, civil society and the local media. What was unusual in this meeting was that the group’s board of directors and executive committee were not present. Moreover, the group’s 70 member-organizations were not present in Wednesday’s extraordinary AGM in Ambassador Hotel. The meeting was even made more bizarre by the fact that it was chaired by the vice-chair of the national state-government Human Rights Commission, Mrs. Lul Hassan who is not a member of the umbrella group of members.

defenders of rights

upholding, protecting and defending human rights for all is risky business
the courage and undeterred will of human rights defenders to keep on fighting, to follow the legal and due processes regardless of the obstacles and threats, to continue demanding justice should be celebrated
demanding their respect and dignity bothers those who didn't do their homework, who claim to respect and uphold those ideas and ideals but feel they do not need to implement them
human rights are a goal but their respect in the process is the only way to attain them
and it starts now

the ultimate balancing act

being an adult, you can have your own place, choose your own life style, live by your own rules, and take your own decisions

adulthood however is also about a your own continuous act of juggling

juggling realities, yours and those of others

juggling wishes, yours and those of others

juggling priorities, yours and those of others

juggling with time, yours and that of others

on fair trials

when you work on human rights you worry about issues regarding fair trials, justice and their importance
so when you are accused but not told for what, "trialed" in absence, and sentenced without recourse or even getting a word edge wards
even if it's in your personal life, for nothing life threatening or even important
you are reminded about their relevance and somehow reinforced in your commitment to continue fighting for them

today's battle

she was feeling little and belittled by the circumstances surrounding her
she was trying to raise her voice as much as she could in the hope that someone would listen
she was wearing an armour too heavy and clumsy to allow her to express herself differently
she was fighting the armour while trying to get reach others, in the hope of getting some help
she was positive she had to win this battle and yet her energy wasn't sufficient
she was trying and trying to cry for help, her voice quieter and quieter as time went by
she was feeling tired, and little, and lonely
she was sure she didn't know how to speak the simple language others did
she was determined to learn a new language and rid herself of such a clumsy armour
she would try when her energy came back, today's battle was lost

food poisoning

normally people get food poisoning in restaurants, bars or other establishments
whereas me, i get it in my own house, from food of my own making
now how silly is that?!

on time management

granted, there aren't the shops, the bars and pubs, the museums, the lovely walks on the southbank, the theatres, the newspapers... the many wonderful things London offers
however there are some stiking similarities in funky Hargeisa, at least when it comes to my own life
the same reality of meeting after meeting, many emails with minutes and action points from those meetings, a forever getting longer to-do list at work...
accumulated news to read and catch up with, emails to send to friends and family, and a healthy social life that offers you more than you can actually do out-of-work
in conclusion, the same feeling of: there are so many things to do and so little time!!
is it a time management issue or it is me?

and just like that

it's October
already!?
still!?
what a time bubble!