Find something to stitch your heart to.

I think that’s the starting point for almost anything.

I got an email the other day from a reader who wanted to know how to find her voice.  I could talk for several years on this topic but I think the first day I ever  realized I had a voice is when I uncovered injustice for the first time. And it made me angry. And it made me choke up. And I wanted to do something. And I decided not to walk away, even though that would be the easier thing to do. Please don’t be so quick to turn away from injustice, you might have been made to do something about it.

Finding a voice begins with realizing that you can either lift your own life up or you can use that curious itch inside of you that wants to do something more to become a powerhouse megaphone for someone who needs an advocate today.

 

Right this moment, my favorite charity– Save the Children– is so-so-so close to reaching their $14,000 fundraising goal over at Sevenly.org to help feed children in war-torn Syria.

I won’t lie, I have a serious company crush on Sevenly. They give generously. They love intentionally. And they produce some really ballin’ swag. Did I just write ‘ballin’ swag’? Why yes, I did. And there is all sorts of it on sale for Save the Children and the Syria crisis until Sunday.

A few things you might not know about me:

1) It’s really, really important to me to be a person who lives for missions that are bigger than my own body. That’s it. That’s the icing all over my cake. That’s what gives me joy and keeps me going. My life is blessed and I am willing to bet yours is too. I choose to use my blessings to be a blessing to other people. It seems to be the only formula that works.

2) Save the Children is a big stinking deal to me. Meet me face-to-face over a cup of brew and you’re gonna hear how it changed my life in so many ways. Before leaping out on my own to write and freelance, I worked on the Communications Team for Save the Children for over a year. The mission is legit. The work is hard & gritty & totally tangible for anyone who has ever gone out to the field to see these folks in action. I can attest that the people who work everyday in the US office are just as bright & bold as the cause they are serving. Them’s good people, through & through. We need more of them in this world.

PAUSE FOR A MOMENT WHEN I WANTED TO PROVE TO YOU HOW TOUGH I REALLY CAN BE.

3) I’m not an expert on the good life. I start a lot of fires (literally… I forget candles are burning and stuff). I’m not always graceful. I still think Tupac is alive. I’m only 25. I’ll probably go through much more heartbreak, and loneliness, and milestone moments than I could ever anticipate in this very day. But in my young adult life, I’ve learned this: it takes guts to believe in something. I mean, to really believe in something so much that you get your skin in the game.

It takes guts to be an advocate. It takes strength to stand up for the things and the people you believe in. It takes even more stamina than I thought to go up against the norm and stand apart. But it’s probably been calling your names for a really long time. And babycakes, it makes you into a much gutsier servant of a person when you decide you’re gonna raise your voice for something. We weren’t made to get comfortable here. We were made to get a little cray and love on people hard. And that especially includes all the little lovelies that are waiting to grow big & strong so that they can make their own voice count one day.

Please, use your voice for a mission that extends far beyond your own fingers or toes.

This stuff matters. I hope you’ll support.