Do you know the story of stone soup? The one where the guy starts with stone and invites everyone to contribute thus making something that was nothing into a delightful meal, a community event and celebration over the miracle of soup made from a stone.
Yesterday, at Sari Bari Kalighat we had Jhal Muri (puffed rice, lots of veggies, chilies etc. mixed in) for a snack…it was stone soup Indian style. The women started with nothing but the idea of a good snack and an invitation to participate. Everyone brought something, a few rupees each, a little cost to create an abundant meal, shared, enjoyed and very tasty!
Sari Bari has been a stone soup of sorts. We started with nothing…only an idea and a little hope. Everyone involved from the beginning until now has brought something to the pot. Kristin Keen gave her dream for freedom and a lot of laughter, I offered my system building skills, creative energy and passion for the dream and the women who could find freedom within the dream, Upendra and Gita offered their sewing talents and their labor of love, each and every woman has offered her hopes, dreams and a good deal of hard work, Melinda Snader got us started in the states by advocating, marketing and dreaming with us, Kat McRitchie keeps us going by doing the same, Beth Waterman offered her support and partnership from our beginnings, Kyle Schroeder offered his sweet design skills, tons of interns and team members offered encouragement and partnership, thousands of people in the US and UK bought our beautiful handmade products, the folks at Freeset who cheered us on and offered wisdom, The One Million Can Campaign gave us the funds to offer freedom to so many more women, Chris Heuertz advocated for our success, Word Made Flesh gave us a foundation, Kyle Scott offered his sweet admin skills and heart for freedom and four years later, 2 production units and working on a third prevention unit, we have the benefit of sharing in a very unique and special soup. This soup from began with just a stone and an invitation to join us for a meal at the table. Now more 60 friends, staff, partners and freedom fighters are sharing in the nourishing and abundant meal in Kolkata, India.
This is the miracle of stone soup! Starting with nothing but a stone and an invitation, in the end we are all beneficiaries of the meal. The women who began with us in the first years are becoming our leaders and partners in the work of freedom, they are our trainers, our assistant managers, our missionaries and the founders of the new projects that have started and will start in the years to come. We who began by offering that the stone could in fact create a delicious meal are in awe of the goodness of the blessing we have received by those who have accepted the invitation. We overwhelmed at the friends, family and freedom that come out of a simple offering, a starting point.
The invitation to join us is still open. We want to receive from the new women who will come through our doors and find a new life, from the interns, staff and friends who keep freedom possible through their purchasing power! The soup is already pretty darn good but hope remains for more, for a more extravagant meal to be shared by all!
Thankful today to be at this table with these beautiful women, partners and friends! Wish you all could have had some Jhal Muri yesterday it was amazing!
Taste and see that God is GOOD!
