Long Pross-A Story

Friends.

We have a story to share with you. Remember this is a site where people's life stories are valued and cherished. YOUR story is valued and cherished. The power of the story is something that I feel like I learned to appreciate in college. I realized as I was reading what felt like thousands of books written by authors from hundreds of years ago, that their stories were timeless. There is a reason people still read the classics-somehow they relate to these stories. Themes such as faith, love, war, self respect and the search for identity is something that we all want to learn about. So today I bring you the story of fellow sister Long Pross.

Nicholas Kristof is doing the interview. Clocking in at only 5 minutes long, her story changed me more than some 2 hour lecture ever has. I encourage you to listen to Long Poss's story and to try and connect. This is real. It is happening in this big world and we MUST not ignore stories such as this but show our friends and family that we can make a difference. Love is a powerful action. We must enlarge our capacity to love women like Long Pross and our fellow sisters who need out help.

I know at first the video is very sad. The truth is Long Pross had a devastating story-but I want to focus on the end...She had HOPE. In the beginning we see a young woman that is what seems to be broken. But by the end I realize that she gathered all the bravery she could to tell her story just so that it could help someone else. She sacrificed her comfort to help another woman that could be in a position like she was.

I have to tell you when I see her at the end doing her studies I see such a beauty. I see a strong, capable, powerful world changer. When Long Pross did this interview did she know that it would be a top video clip on YouTube and people would be blogging about her calling her a world changer and heroine? I don't think so. I think that you will agree with me that she is all these things and more...

Just like Long Pross-your story matters. Whether you know it or not your story can change the way someone looks about life or themselves. It does not matter what your story is, someone will connect with it. We are more alike than we think. I encourage you to be brave and courageous like Long Pross.I also wanted to highlight her rescuers in this story. They took Long Pross in and have been teaching her how to live and how to make a future. It is organizations like that, that set the precedent of how we should be dealing with horrific situations like this.

I do not know if Long Pross will ever see this blog post, but I have to hope that one day she does. Long Pross if you someday read this I want to thank you. Thank You for sharing your story to a 22 year old woman from California that will forever be changed by your words, your courage, your beauty and your strength. Your capacity to turn something so horribly wrong into hope and vision is both astounding and inspiring. I feel blessed to have come across your interview and you will be a part of my prayers. I look forward to the day you own your business and continue to use your voice to change the world. 

Friends, have a great day today. If you ever feel like sharing your story, please email us...you never know who it might help. Also if you would like to share anything, anything at all, whether it be an interview you saw, or an article that Her Voice Is may be interested in please pass it on! 

Passionate Story-Teller,

Bethany 

Nicholas D. Kristof-Hero

Hello my passionate friends!

I hope your memorial weekend is going amazing. The last post Her Voice Is did something a little different. We highlighted a male music artist who was seriously projecting a very similar voice to our own. It was so exciting because I think we sometimes forget that there are men out there fighting for our cause, which is valuing the voice of women and treating them with fairness and the respect that they deserve. I think we as women need to make sure not to take on a hyper-feminist attitude that scorns the male population. The fact is that men are just as wonderful as women and their voice is just as important if not vital to this cause of raising awareness. What better way to prove the there are GREAT, WONDERFUL men out there that desire women to be a solution and support and encourage a movement of women with purpose and hope, than to show the blog community that these men are out there!

I have definitely seen and read about the horrific situations that some men have placed our fellow sisters in, but I have been EXTREMELY blessed and honored to know and have men, like my husband and father, in my life that have shown their desire to see women be treated like the amazing, caring, beautiful world changers that they are. It is important to hear stories of our sisters, but I think it is healthy and wise to hear about brothers that are fighting for us as well. We are not two enemies. This will only work and be rectified if we come together and fight this side by side. Our enemy is injustice. Plain and simple. We hate what is wrong and we do everything we can to turn hateful, ugly situations into something beautiful and filled with hope. Never forget there is hope.

Which brings me to introduce Nick Kristof, co-author with his wife Cheryl WuDunn of epic book Half the Sky. Below is a short clip of the book and purpose behind his mission. Take a look.

Ever since I read this life changing book, I have been fascinated by Nicholas Kristof and his mission to bring solutions to women's humanitarian issues around the world. I think it is wonderful and necessary to see a man who not only reports on the issues but as you can see in the video below he LIVES and BREATHES and EXPERIENCES what these women are going through. This is so vital to this movement because we see that he is not doing this for fame or power but rather he is becoming a part of these women's lives. I find his work fascinating, captivating and completely PERFECT for the standard of how men should be responding to these issues. He is not afraid to get his hands dirty and become aware of what is really out there. He literally takes on their burdens as his own and helps carry the load.

I encourage you to read the book because there is so much I can say about this modern day hero. His stories will keep you at the edge of your seat and if you have not met many men who have dedicated part of themselves to fighting for the honoring of women than I promise your faith in mankind will be restored by hearing his stories.

Follow Nick Kristof on Twitter: @NickKristof

or on the Web

http://www.halftheskymovement.com/

Ladies, Let's Stand for Them All

Hello friends!

I hope this blog post finds you happy, passionate and full of joy and purpose. Things have been very busy lately, I apologize for the lack of posts...blogger was down for a couple weeks and I haven't been able to do anything. I hope that you have been shining your light and being a solution. I want you to know that although I have not posted, my mind is with my fellow world-changers always!

I wanted to share this music video with you. It is by Andy Grammer, and exceptional artist if I do say so myself! My cousin Alisha introduced his music to me. He is an up and coming artist that will have his cd out soon. The video is of his song called "Ladies." The lyrics are not out so I could not post them, but listen to the song carefully and it will rock your world.

In one song he completely explains my view on the treatment of women and also how we can change the way society sees women. Rather than seeing women like "Candy" we can teach our children and this generation to stand up for women, because each woman in a mother, sister a daughter or a wife to somebody. Friends we MUST implement change. Men are not the problem, but rather the opinions and standards that have been passed down are the problem. If we can create a healthy and positive image of women to young boys and men then they will grow up to respect and honor women and see them as the beautiful, fierce, intelligent beings that we were born to be. The reason sex trafficking and other horrendous situations exist is because of ignorance. Like the song says WE MUST STAND FOR THEM ALL. We must refuse to stay ignorant and we must refuse injustice. We have to fight to establish the respect and honor for women that should have always been there. People must realize that ever person...MAN or woman, came from a WOMAN. It is time for us to start voicing our opinions and being examples of strong individuals. There are so many awesome men that have already begun to do this and we will be highlighting their efforts in the weeks to come. Men like this are world changers who have decided to stand and cherish and value women as all men should. This is vital and necessary so that future generations will rise up and break the cycle of violence and hate that has sadly fallen upon women.

My Passionate, Strong, Wonderful, Beautiful ladies...LET'S STAND FOR THEM ALL!