Stories

Mom showed me the meaning of compassion, what it is like to feel protected and nurtured. She taught me how to unleash my inner mother and make sure other moms around the world have the medicines and training they need to give their children and entire communities a head start in life and build a lifelong foundation in health.

This Mother’s Day I will be looking beyond the flowers and Sunday brunches, beyond the saccharine poetry of greeting card sentimentality. I will be looking at my wife and my mother, at the generations lined up behind these two women as well as those that stand beside them from around the world, and I will give heartfelt thanks for the grit and gumption that comprises the soul of motherhood.

As I write this blog rescue operations are underway in Japan and Ecuador following powerful earthquakes that caused massive damage to property and loss of life. These events remind us of our vulnerability and as the story unfolds they will underscore the critical importance of preparedness, response and long-term recovery. As it happens, over the last several weeks I have had occasion to travel to three countries, Nepal, Japanand Haiti, to observe and assess the long-term work being done to recover from similar events in the past.

El Nino episodes occur every 3-5 years, and result in changes in rainfall patterns globally, therefore leading to the potential of either drought, or heavy rains and flooding – both of which can hugely disrupt the seasons of the small family farmers we work with.

Displaced Syrians Help and Find Healing with Holy Land Institute for the Deaf

When I kneel before the Cross this Good Friday, my mind will turn to the many ways the world is hurting right now. I pray that I will have the courage to look and not turn away.