Weekend Thoughts: Memoirs

I’ve mentioned before, that the situation in Sudan has been heavy on my heart lately.  During my attempt to do something about it, I felt it was of utmost importance to learn more about it.  Recently, I decided to read some memoirs written by people who are from the region and whose lives have been affected by the atrocities. 

A few weeks ago I read Halima Bashir’s memoir of Survival in Darfur entitled Tears of the Desert.   I was drawn to read this book because Halima was born the same year as me.  Here is a woman who is my exact age, and yet her life is drastically different than mine because of the location we were born in. 

Reading her first hand account brought the situation home to me in ways that a cnn article could not.  It put a face and story to the grave statistics. 

One thing that I was struck by was the similarities of our lives.  She came from a loving family.  She went to school.  She even had electricity and later in life a television.  Yet, she endured horrific persecution because of her gender and skin color.  The atrocities that she faced are truly unspeakable.   She was considered less than a dog merely b/c of her ethnicity!  And yet she was treated worse than any dog I’ve seen. 

I was impressed by her strength.  She stood up for what was right when it cost her everything and everyone.  She persevered when most would have despaired.  She survived. 

As I read the book, I had to remind myself that this was true.  This was a real person and these events were not exaggerated or imagined.

As I seek to educate myself more of the events taking place around the world, I plan to seek out more memoirs.  By reading another’s first hand experience, I can better sympathize and understand situations that are taking place.  Next on my reading list is  A Long Way Gone : Memoirs of a Boy Soldier written by Ishmael Beah.  Much like Halima, Ishmael was born only a year after me and yet this life’s story is like nothing I have ever known.   These stories are not easy to read, but I feel it is important for me to learn from their experiences. 

What are you thinking about this week? Why not use your last post of the week to highlight something a bit "deeper" then the average Momblog fair?  I’d love to read your thoughts.  Please feel free to write and link up a  “thoughtful” post below.  You can write a new post or link up one you wrote earlier in the week.