A frequently asked question...

After two and a half years, we have a good idea of the kinds of questions that people are likely to ask us about the work we're doing.  One of those questions is often wondering about how we keep going in the face of such a difficult topic, genocide and conflict related crises.  It's a good question, and we appreciate people asking.  

It's not easy. And some days are more difficult than others.  Today is one of the difficult days.

I've been thinking a lot the past week or so about what's happening in Sudan and South Sudan right now.  I often say that I find the troubles in Congo to be the most heartbreaking thing I can imagine. I'm expanding that to include the suffering of the people of South Sudan and the border region.  I wanted to find something to share with you to bring it back to the fore of our thoughts.

Here's a video that NY Times op-ed columnist Nicholas Kristof made a few months ago when he sneaked into the Nuba Mountain area. It's hard to watch, so just prepare for that.  

And then there was the visitor we had to the One Million Bones office this morning.  It's rainy in Albuquerque today and I thought at first that maybe he was just trying to get in out of the rain.  But what he said to us was, "Are you serious?"  When I asked him about what, he said, "About trying to end genocide." Katie, Naomi and I all responded that we're very serious about raising awareness about it and doing what we can.  He told us that basically it's hopeless, and he left.

What to do in the face of all this?  We figure we either do what we do or do nothing.  So we keep on and we do it with passion and hope and humor.  Which is the answer to the question about how we keep going in the face of all the sadness and hopelessness.  We continue to work with passion and hope.

And then there's the humor part. We decided that the next time (if there is a next time) that someone stops in to the office and tells us that what we're doing is hopeless, that we're going to respond by agreeing, closing our computers and walking out of the office with them.  Perhaps we'll get a coffee and then we'll head back to the office, have a good laugh, and get back to our work.