You may have seen in the news this week that the US Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsberg passed away from cancer at the age of 87. She was one of only 2 women on the US Supreme Court, but more importantly she was an incredible person.
When she started Harvard Law School in 1955 there were only a handful of women that were allowed to study. In addition, she was a mother of a young daughter and her husband was studying Harvard Law a year above her. In a twisted turn, her husband was diagnosed with cancer and to help him continue at Harvard Law Ruth not only attended her classes, she also attended his classes and in the evening she would share her notes with her bedridden husband so he could continue his studies. Wow, what an inspirational person.
Her true claim to fame was how she repeatedly fought and influenced the legal system to recognise the rights of women (and minorities). I had the pleasure of watching a movie on her life called ‘On the basis of sex’ with my daughters. It was fascinating to watch their reactions to what women were not able to do in the 1960’s and 1970’s. We had a great discussion about the courage that it must have taken her to stand up for what she believes in. More importantly she did this in a way that blended logic with the need to be human and follow what is right.
So what are you having the courage to step up for? Is it an idea that you believe will help others? Is it a project at work that you think will make a real difference? Or is it supporting someone who may be unfairly taken advantage of. With 2020 being a crazy and unpredictable year, it is easy to stay in the shadows and let fear stop you from taking action on what you believe.
On a personal level, I am having the courage to continue supporting and promoting Hands Across the Water, the charity that supports over 350 Thai children at 6 homes across Thailand. With the economic downturn, we are fighting harder than we ever have to continue having the courage to ask people to not forget others that are worse off during this time.
Rather than asking for a donation I would like to invite you to join me for a night of celebration. Normally this time of year we gather together and share our vision forward and have a celebration of what has been achieved.
This year Hands is having a Big Night In Event on Saturday the 31st of October (yes Halloween!) You can sign up on the website and host your family or a small group of friends for an evening of inspiration and connection, all from your home. I am having the courage to ask for anyone with donations of gifts, hotel nights, day on a boat, etc for our charity auction to reach out to me so we can all do a little to make a bigger difference.
As you go about your day remember to have the courage to act on what you believe in and help others to do the same and maybe we can make Ruth Bader Ginsberg smile from heaven.
