Running

The beauty that takes my breath away, the fresh air that fills it up again and my feet to take me farther into its depths.


Like everything I struggled at first but soon I found my bearings. Running has taken over my body and mind like a drug. I crave the high. I habitually think about running, from the moment I wake and again an hour after I complete my run. I could have gone farther; maybe I can go again today? Where will I run to tomorrow?
It is a healthy asphyxiation driven by the pure desire to get the endorphins flowing through my body, pulling the corners of my mouth upwards into a smile, my heart lighter and my eyes refreshed with the view of the fresh green fields before me. I want to keep my body moving, to breathe in the fresh country air and feel the sweat pouring down my heated chest.
I only wish I knew the joys of running before this, if I could have stuck out the initial pain at first. But could have should have, I am thankful that I did.
While running, particularly a girl running is not common in these parts men and women occasionally cheer me on. Sometimes I get a confused look by passersby who appear to ask themselves, ‘Is someone after her? Does she need help?’ The only dangers I face are the sheppard’s dogs who upon seeing me bark and unleashed make advances towards me. If I had not been munched on before from the ancestor of a wolf, I might not be so fearful.
Everywhere I go is up hill yet the reverse never seems to be a downward slope. The landscape is ever-changing. Thanks to the high frequency of precipatation this winter the fields are now gleaming in the most vibrant green I have ever seen in nature. The fertility of earth is in contrast to the red harsh rocky soil.
Thank you Kerrie, Alexis and Alicia for encouraging me and introducing me to this endorphin rich routine, thank you earth for your beauty and resiliency.

Village snap shots

International Women's Day - March 8th

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ld2hfLAvqkA


Excerpt provided by the United Nations website:


Why dedicate a day exclusively to the celebration of the world's women?

The United Nations General Assembly, composed of delegates from every Member State, celebrates International Women's Day to recognize that peace and social progress require the active participation and equality of women, and to acknowledge the contribution of women to international peace and security.

For the women of the world, the Day is an occasion to review how far they have come in their struggle for equality, peace and development.

You might think that women's equality benefits mostly women, but every one-percentile growth in female secondary schooling results in a 0.3 percent growth in the economy. Yet girls are often kept from receiving education in the poorest countries that would best benefit from the economic growth.

Until the men and women work together to secure the rights and full potential of women, lasting solutions to the world's most serious social, economic and political problems are unlikely to be found.

In recent decades, much progress has been made. On a worldwide level, women's access to education and proper health care has increased; their participation in the paid labor force has grown; and legislation that promises equal opportunities for women and respect for their human rights has been adopted in many countries. The world now has an ever- growing number of women participating in society as policy-makers.

However, nowhere in the world can women claim to have all the same rights and opportunities as men.

The majority of the world's 1.3 billion absolute poor are women.

On average, women receive between 30 and 40 per cent less pay than men earn for the same work.

And everywhere, women continue to be victims of violence, with rape and domestic violence listed as significant causes of disability and death among women of reproductive age worldwide.

NGO!

So my project is moving along!

Not only am I working on a film, but the group of Moroccans that I am working with want to make sure everything is sustainable, which of course I agree with 100%. So, the group and I are taking it one step further and forming an NGO that will work as a networking tool to help connect women from across the country and also with international opportunities and resources. Check out our NGO website and please stay posted.

http://initiativesdesfemmes.webs.com/

Videos on womens rights in Morocco

http://vodpod.com/watch/457121-womens-rights-morocco
(2 minutes)

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2009/07/03/mathur.morroco.women.cnn?iref=allsearch
(4 minutes)

I recommend watching them in this order.

The human soul on fire

I am ecstatic and more filled with motivation than I can contain in my 5'5'' frame.
Today I had a very successful meeting with the director, technician, interviewer and a staff member from Al Akhawayn to discuss our massive undertakings.
Following our meeting I watched a film called Crossing Borders produced by Morocco Exchange and assistant produced by Lotfi. It truly inspired me and reminded me of what I am doing and why.
To see a trailer visit:
www.crossingbordersfilm.org

We can change and improve the human condition with pure compassion and resilience.

Today discussing our film we rolled out the structure of our project which I will dispense to you now.

We are creating a non-governmental organization (NGO), with the working title Women and a Movement. This organization will be run and implemented by Moroccans. It will be a massive network of individuals and organizations all working towards improving the condition and livelihood of Moroccan women and families. The organization will be arranged into network categories of people we know, will meet during our interviews and afterwards. These categories will include in the broadest sense education, health, enterprise, spirituality, leadership and environment. This will not only be a collaboration of Moroccan partners but we are also looking to reach out and eventually expand internationally with the hopeful collaboration of groups such as Women for Democracy and Friendship Force International.
We are working on having a forum every year for all participants to collaborate together in one space every Spring (god willing).

Our first venture into this project will be a film.

During the spring our team will be traveling throughout Morocco for an intensive 20 days of interviewing and networking. We will be collecting profiles and stories of successful Moroccan women and the communities that support them. This film will be shown to students, rural communities and all who are interested to help spread the message of empowerment, community participation and human potential for a growing movement towards women’s equal participation and contribution to society.

We will end the film with our first activity which will be hosting Friendship Force from Australia in my village for a day to discuss with the women health and wellbeing.

Accompanying the film will be an inclusive resource and action guide that will contain film discussion questions, leadership and gender activities, lists of organizations, individuals and institutions from across the country all working towards the same goal.


We will, I will, not let this project be anything less then what is stated above. We are a motivated, networked and passionate team of individuals and keep growing.

For ways to help support our vision please contact me and visit our blog.

womenandamovement.blogspot.com

Soon we hope to have up an interactive and illustrated website.
Swift speed and godbless

Adjarninu (My Neighbor)

It is easy to be fooled by this young gentleman who comes up to my waist. He may appear innocent but is a wild wild young lad.
He comes to my house almost every day with his runny nose and with excitement stutters as he askes me if he can have something. He knocks on the door, I answer, he enters and starts walking around.
"Karima (my Moroccan name), can, can, can, I have your pen"
Oh yes he is cute but also get into a lot of trouble.
I will let him draw but he draws on everything but the paper.
I give him a candy and he tells all the kids in town I have candy.

I love this neighbor of mine I do in a self torturing way.

New Blog

So as some of you may know I have been working on producing a film.
I started a blog to let people know details of the project.
Here you can post any questions or comments and stay updated.


Thank you all for your love and support.

womenandamovement.blogspot.com

the sun

the sun came out today!

Severe weather is very real

I just returned back to Morocco from a vacation back home in the states which I will discuss in a later post but there are more pressing matters.
As soon as I arrived back to my home I was confonted with reality and dangers of nature. My ceiling in my house has begun to leak and mold.



Aside from what now seems like a minor problem I face in my house, I am faced with something scarier outside. The river, the water, the flooding. Houses are flooding, river is overflowing, walls have been broke, rocks are tumbling under rushes of rapids funneling through our valley. Water is thundering ouside of my house, haunting yet soothing in its grandocity.



We have been experiencing severe rains and the snow that accumulated has now melted and has joined the river to create a powerful force. Not only are homes in danger but so are peoples livelyhoods. Farms, with this seasons crops of carrots, potatoes and the like are destroyed. Plantations, years of hard work are washed away.