esa lengua celestial

Ok y’all… more updates later today hopefully… I’m nearing a few milestones and will have more yammering posted soon about the passage of time and all the hectic nonsense that has recently pervaded my life. In case I don’t get around to the details, just FYI I will be home in Singapore on June 17, so pencil me in somehow :) Also, I want to keep this post up top for a few weeks, so all updates will come in below this one.

So. A very good friend of mine has decided to do something that I recommend to everyone: figure out what she really wants to do, and then find a way to make it happen, even though currently it seems beyond her means. Basically, she needs to get fluent in Arabic, and also wants to visit her family and her roots in Palestine, where she can kill two birds with one stone and take these phenomenal Arabic classes (and be immersed, thus learning faster). She’s wanted to do this summer trip for as long as I’ve known her, but this year she’s finally convinced that it can actually happen.

So. I’m inviting you to help make it happen. You can read more about Leila’s plans HERE, and also contribute via Paypal or by giving (constructive) advice or encouragement. I really want this to come true for her, and I’m a big believer in the power of cyberspace to spread the word (and hopefully accumulate support) in an exponential fashion. Think about it. If 5 people read this and put in $5 a piece, then tell 5 other people who also put in $5 a piece, it would only take 4 cycles to raise 90% of her trip costs, at no significant cost to any of the contributors. Moreover, if anyone puts in more than $5 or tells more than 5 people, obviously the whole thing gets accelerated.

So I’d like to encourage you to come and be a part of this. Do your part to make the world a place where strangers help each other. Feed the philosophy that small contributions from individuals can collectively make bigger things happen. Help one person come closer to believing that she can accomplish things that seem out of her reach — and by extension, convince yourself that you can too. I also encourage you to do this for yourself: find something you really want to do, believe you can do it, and then be willing to let other people help make it happen.

In any case, while I can’t strong arm anyone into donating money, I can do my part to wheedle people into at least spreading the word. So I hereby inaugurate the Help Leila Get To Ramallah Tag where each person tagged has to place a link in their blog to this post or to Leila’s blog, and then tag 5 more people by linking to their blogs. Time is short kiddos… Leila leaves in 2 weeks!

So!

Joel, opf, ac, trekkiemonster, and Nick….. consider yourself tagged :)

(Of course, feel free to join the party even if you haven’t been tagged!)