Do the SHONA women blow your mind?

Have you ever noticed that most of the links on Facebook promise to be "mind-blowing"?   
I mean the lead in to almost every video that is posted proclaims something like...

"at 1:00 my jaw dropped."
"at 2:37 my mind was blown."

Almost nothing is posted without a promise of...

"This is unbelievable!" or perhaps "This will change the way you see everything"

Clearly we live in a world that is endlessly fascinating and shocking.  Or so they tell me.

It becomes hard to compete.  I mean should I even bother posting a link if it doesn't promise to change the world, or at least blow your mind?

I struggle with this question a lot.

For the past 6 years I have worked with 4 amazing women.  In all honesty these are 4 of the most poor and vulnerable women in the world. 

I could traffic in catch-phrases.  After all the women are refugees.  They are disabled.  They are poor and vulnerable.

And they are amazing.  And inspiring.  And complicated.  And their lives deftly refuse to be summarized into any kind of 3 minute clip.

One of our customers recently wrote  a review which read

I have been astounded over the years about the stamina, hard work ethic and product quality and development of the Shona Congo women. In the face of overwhelming odds they have continued their work...these women are the strongest I know in this day."

  And that's the thing that most of our customers would attest to... Watching these women on such a personal level, year after year, is truly mind-blowing.  But it isn't a 3 minute clip.  It is a friendship that lasts a lifetime. 

SHONA is tiny, with no outside funding and no staff.  This sometimes drives me crazy, because it is hard for us to get our message out there. 

But it has also made us incredibly real.  You all have followed the very real lives of these women.  You, our friends, have fled war with these women.  You have followed them to refugee camps, prayed as they gave birth to their children.  And touched the stitches they have sewn with their own hands.

And I'm willing to gamble that somewhere along the journey these women have blown your mind. That they have changed the way you see the world.

If that is true, would you do this for us?
1:  Share this video
2. But before you hit "share", make it personal. Add your own story, telling your friends 1 way that the SHONA Congo women blow your mind.  Or 1 way that they have made you see the world differently.

In the end, I think back to all those 3 minute clips on Facebook.  The ones that promise to blow my mind and change the way I see the world.

Mostly they have just blown my 3 minutes.  In an amusing way of course.  And there is nothing wrong with that.  Sometimes, we all just need a little amusement.

But we also need real friendships.  We need to share this journey of life.  My guess is that you buy SHONA because Argentine, Mapendo, Riziki, and Solange are real to you.  Would you take just a minute, and help make us real to somebody new? You can hit email this post to a friend directly below, or visit our Facebook page and share the video from there. 
Thank you!