I have much admiration for the sky, also for the arms, but above all I have a deep admiration for women. This African proverb, where women, arms and sky are so united and interact in such a simple, respectful and unanimous way to support the sky, is my favorite proverb and the one that best represents all the women who share arms and sky in Meki, Ethiopia.
The Meki sky in which we live is made up of many women who, in a simple, constant and often barely noticeable way, make a lot of noise. It is a constant noise, full of affection, kindness, but also impertinent and full of rebellion, anger and non-acceptance of the many responsibilities and few rights with which they have to live. They make a special noise, they don’t go quiet, nobody silences them, and they are changing many things, many lives, beginning by their own.
We met many of them just a year ago. They had lost work, home and family with the arrival of the pandemic. Now they are called “women in situations of extreme vulnerability”. And yes, they were very vulnerable. When they were invited to be part of a new project, many of their faces were transformed, they recovered their smiles and also the hope they had lost. They joined the Savings Groups with other women who shared and understood the serious difficulties they were going through. And they felt that they were once again trusted, that they were offered a new opportunity to start businesses, also helping them with the most basic and essential things they needed: health, decent housing, and schooling for their children.
And from there—they began to dream again, and their dreams are now real. They are proud of the achievements made, of the initiatives undertaken, and they have self-confidence again. And by sharing in the meetings of the Savings Groups the occasions of sexist violence that many of them continue to suffer, they get angry, support each other and fight because they know they deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. All these women with whom I live and share daily work continue to support the sky of Meki, and continue to make a constant noise, not shrill but persistent, to move forward together. They are being an example for many others.
And as another African proverb says, "the footprints of people who walked together are never erased". I will continue to work so that there are more and more traces and noises of women who continue to demand change, transforming lives.
