I have reached the conclusion that passions and curiosity are inherently intertwined, a friend speaking to me recently of a quote that passions should not be thought of as concrete objectives, but considered in the same manner with which we view our feelings — A confident fact we know about feelings; they change. Likewise, our curiosities change and often in a manner of side-tracked seconds. Like many I am sure,narrowing my aspirations has never come easily, though I have always considered myself somewhat of a humanitarian, a forever unwavering motive to advocate for women’s rights. This task stimulated me to contemplate when and why my passion began –
My intrigue emerged when reading the confronting, beautiful book Gogo Mama by Sally Sara, a collection of real-life events faced by twelve astonishingly brave, selfless African women. Undermined by the circumstances she fell victim to a particular harrowing story of one of these women struck me, and still does when I recall it today – A Rwanda genocide survivor asked by a young rebel boy whether she would rather smile or frown. Smile, her lips would be cut by a hunting knife, frown, they would by pierced and padlocked shut; She chose to frown.This remarkable woman recalls her own agony and fear, accompanied by the terror of the young boy himself, yet never hostile nor resentful throughout her recollection. To me, that is the greatest display of courage. Through this reflexive thinking I recognised the subconscious inspiration this story has provided and the subsequent meta-narrative discovery it has sent me on.
My research at a preliminary stage was to be on young women today and the role they play in improving the lives of those less fortunate. I acknowledged that this was an extremely broad topic that encountered too many research restrictions in terms of scope and availability. Therefore, following voluntary participation in the International Women’s Day Breakfast in Sydney, as part of the UN Women AU. Committee on the 9th March 2017, I chose to focus on the role of young women in volunteering and ‘what motivates, or deters, young women from participating in voluntary programs?’. I intend to do so through conducting primary research in the form of focus groups, surveys and one-on-one interviews with my female peers. I have not yet fully fleshed out my research modes, yet aim to reveal why volunteering it geared towards foreign exchanges and academic programs rather than philanthropic purposes. I hope to influence young women to take charge in a manner beneficiary for themselves while equally to fellow women in need of a voice.
References:
Sara, S 2013, Gogo Mama; a journey into the lives of twelve African women, Macmillan, Australia.
Image; Gogo Mama book cover, http://www.Goodreads.com ,viewed March 11 2017.
CAITLIN DEVERY - Talk with me 