FeedWOW! blog tour: Gogo’s Dream: Swaziland Discovered
June 21, 2010 in Book Club Possibility, Elementary Educators, Fighting world poverty, Half the Sky, High School Teachers, Middle School Teachers, multicultural books, Neas Linda Rhinehart, Preschool to 1st grade teachers Tags: Gogo's Dream: Swaziland Discovered, Linda Rhinehart Neas, Women of Swaziland, WOW! blog tour
I am so happy to welcome, Linda M. Rhinehart Neas, on her WOW! blog tour. Linda has written the amazing poetry book, Gogo’s Dream: Swaziland Discovered. This book of poetry is inspired by the people of Swaziland and the work of Dr. Maithri Goonetilleke, an Australian physician and poet who spends time working with the people of Swaziland. The poems illustrate the poverty and need in Swaziland but also the love and dignity of this family oriented culture. All of the profits of this book will go to Possible Dreams International to help the peoples of Swaziland. You can preview and purchase the book here.
***Linda has written a terrific post for my blog today. And anyone who leaves a question or comment for Linda will be entered for a chance to win a copy of her book.
Love Story: The Women of Swaziland
by Linda Rhinehart Neas
When he (Dr. Goonetilleke) met Gogo Ida, her remaining daughter had just given birth to a second child. The daughter’s first child, a three-year old is named Nothando, which means “Love.”
Love is the capital that Gogo Ida, nearly seventy, exists on daily. Love for her daughter dying, like her other children, of AIDS; love for the grandchildren, which are now in her care; love for God to whom she prays in the mud hut with holes in the walls where snakes and rats torment the children. Her prayers are simple – protection from the cold, food for the children, a better future for her grandchildren.
Love has brought Dr. Maithri Goonetilleke and the other members of Possible Dreams International (PDI) to Swaziland. Love supports the work they do to help bring the essentials to people devastated by disease and poverty. Love surrounds Gogo Ida and the thousands of Gogos (grandmothers) of Swaziland as they bury their beloved children and care for their orphaned grandchildren.
The Love that fuels Gogo Ida’s (pictured here) hope for a better future for her grandchildren, the dream of all Gogos in Swaziland, which has the highest percentage of HIV infected population in the world, has brought her a new home, built by members of her community with the aid of PDI. The home has the luxury of strong walls, a corrugated roof, a door and windows. It will protect her grandchildren from the varmints that sneak in at night trying to rob her of what little food she has and threatening her grandchildren.
Just before Dr. Maithri leaves Gogo Ida’s home, she receives the first parcel of her supplemental food – Mealie meal, a porridge-based product that is the staple of the Swazi diet, 60 eggs, sugar and beans. Gogo Ida was elated, singing and dancing for joy. “Last night, every morsel of food that we have was gone. Now the children can eat!”
Dr. Maithri lowered his head as tears ran down his face. Love wrapped its arms around Gogo Ida and her family, bringing Light into her humble home.
~~~~
Being a woman in Swaziland isn’t necessarily a death sentence, but it might as well be. In 2009, the average life expectancy in Swaziland was 37. Approximately 42% of the pregnant women in the country were HIV positive. Nearly 185,000 of the one million people living there are infected. However, AIDS is not the only disease ravaging the lives of women in Swaziland.
Struggling in a country where poverty is the norm, infectious diseases run rampant. Women, mostly young girls and Gogos, spend a huge part of the day collecting water that is filthy and contaminated with bacteria and pollutants. They then struggle to cook food, wash and bathe in this water. Boiling doesn’t remove the contaminants. Lack of education, lack of medical care creates a vicious cycle of poverty, disease, and death.
The good news is that through initiatives like Possible Dreams International, women, children, and entire communities are getting education, are receiving medical care and are beginning to live healthier, happier lives. Change takes time, money and love.
In the words of Dr. Maithri, “Love the world into change.” It is my hope that Gogo’s Dream: Swaziland Discovered, my work of Love, will add much needed fuel to creating this change.
June 21st, 2010 at 8:48 am
Stories like this make us realize how truly fortunate we are.
June 21st, 2010 at 8:54 am
The image of Gogo Ida, that she smiles despite living in what most of us visiting here see as abject poverty, shows a depth of spirit that finds joy in a cooling raindrop, the laughter of a child, the song of a bird. To read her story in verse I think would help not just women, but men, connect with the essence of life, not mere trappings.
A question ~ Do you think poetry can be a vehicle for real change in our lifetime (and that of Gogo Ida) if those erected to power are deaf to its lyric song?
June 21st, 2010 at 9:43 am
Margo, this sounds like a wonderful book!
June 21st, 2010 at 9:51 am
WOW! I went to the website for the organization and what heartbreaking statistics! I can’t wait to pass this information along to my poverty teacher and class. I hope we can figure out something creative to help.
June 21st, 2010 at 4:58 pm
Thank you to everyone who has left a comment so far. Kate, you make a good point that if someone is deaf to a message or a particular way to deliver the message that it may be hard to get it across. However, one has to try as hard as possible to make dreams a reality and to try and reach people through all different means, in my opinion. Thanks for your comment.
June 21st, 2010 at 8:49 pm
Margo,
Thanks for supporting my efforts through your blog. It is wonderful to have connected with such great spirits.
LuAnn,
Yes, we are so fortunate. It is that fortune that calls us to responsibility, that is, the responsibility to aid others who are less fortunate. Thank you for your visit here.
Kate,
The wonderful thing about poetry is that it travels easily, thereby gaining access to places other media might never attain access to because it can be given by word of mouth. Over the years, poems where how news of events traveled from village to village. Do I think it makes a difference. Yes! Absolutely, because each person who reads the book and is touched then has the opportunity to do something. Buy the book and 1/2 the cost goes directly to PDI. Or, simply donate to PDI. Each penny makes a difference in the lives of the Gogos and their communities.
Thank you for your kind comments and thoughtful question.
Cinda,
I hope you get a chance to get a copy. I think you will enjoy it and as I said 1/2 the cost (all of the profit) goes directly to PDI. Thanks for visiting!
Amie,
Please feel free to contact me if I can help with an initiative in your class. PDI is an amazing organization. The work they are doing is filled with love. I hope to hear from you. Thanks for visiting the blog.
As Dr. M would say, ” Love the world into change.” Thank you all for your kind thoughts, thoughtful questions and creative ideas. Blessings! Linda
June 22nd, 2010 at 6:26 am
Thanks for a wonderful post. It is so inspiring! I LOVE, LOVE the quote: “Love the world into change.”
June 22nd, 2010 at 5:50 pm
Dear Donna,
Thanks for your kind words. I appreciate your visiting this post.
Peace…Linda
June 22nd, 2010 at 6:13 pm
Hi Linda,
What a great book! I feel very fortunate and thanks so much for sharing such a wonderful story.
Irene
June 23rd, 2010 at 6:38 am
Thank you, Irene, for your kind words. Blessings! Linda
January 13th, 2012 at 2:09 pm
Really good blog you have got here. You’ll find me reading through your stuff often. Saved as a favorite!