an anonymous cry

read an article in time magazine about a book that leads to a website (www.first8.org). out of curiousity i picked up the website and typed away. i then became yet another audience to 8 pages of emotions. real pictures of men and women, children and elderly who speak about poverty.

maybe it is in their eyes, as much of the profiles only reveals parts of the face. or maybe because the topic affects me in a very special way.

i have to say that the past few days have been turbulent so to speak. especially with my relationships here in the office. but here i am, typing away before 8am. checking my email earlier and already calling up a colleague as early as 7.30am. and not to mention that i left the office last night at 9.30pm, no dinner and a nose that is clearly stuffed.

i do ask myself my stake in this work. and even if i said yesterday that definitely, they have diminished much. but looking at the pictures these early tuesday morning, with a little bit of drizzle, even without breakfast yet, i cannot help but identify with what the organization is doing in order to do our share in lifting even just the pinky finger against poverty. while the organization does not come to communities as messiahs and the be-all-end-all intervenor, we come in pride and tap ourselves on the back because of yet another day of moving towards better lives and moving away from poverty.

and those thoughts are probably my last strings that attach me to this organization. and probably the same that would bind me to development work for a longer time.

and amidst the turbulence of it all, i remember people of our communities today. and hope with them that everything is going to be all right.