Each person has a unique voice

I am not sure how I found World Pulse but I am very happy I did. Me and an old friend of mine lost touch and while we were chatting she said to me, things happen for a reason and people come into your life when you need them most. This thing could be a friend who was there in a hard time, a person giving you directions when you were lost or a website inspiring you to realize your potential. Now that I am done school I feel like a chapter has been finished in my life and while I am excited I often find that I keep asking myself 'what is next?', 'what can I do better?', “how can I be a part of positive change?'. In my short life, people with good intentions ask what do you want to be when you get older? What is next? What if you do not get that job?....and the list goes on. People want to know what path you plan to take in life. I often find it hard to really narrow down a clear plan of action and often list places I want to discover or a list of Masters programs I want to take. All the while, I think to myself, when I grow up I want to be engaged in social justice issues, be part of a global movement, inspire others and be inspired, I want to live in a community that I feel apart of, I want to have friends and family who truly love me for who I am and most of all I want the world to be a better place to live. These answers do not generally interest people, so I spend my time telling people what they want to hear, not just to these questions, but, I find I have spent a lot of time trying to express myself in ways I think people will want me to.

Like many other women at World Pulse, I was really not sure if I should participate and was hesitant to start writing. I have trouble expressing my thoughts and feelings and thought I did not have much to offer. I really think that every experience I have had, good or bad has helped shape who I am today and the voice that I have. What this World Pulse community has done has, has let me be my own voice. It has let me speak, articulate my passions and engage with other women from across the world sharing similar life experiences or views. As this weeks material presented, we have to 'stand up for our true self'. I feel that this would provide me, as well as other women a chance to realize their potential and understand their own voice. Each person has a unique voice, a set of experiences and a personal understanding of the world that makes their story worth hearing.

I read a quote once and it has stuck with me since: 'Understand each way of living makes perfect sense in the setting it was created'. While I might not be able to fully understand what someone is going through or why they might behave a certain way, by reading their stores, having a conversation or a friendly debate, by sharing our knowledge and listening to others we can change the world.