The name SUDARA is inspired by the Sanskrit word meaning ‘beautiful.’ We are drawn to the idea of beauty and the many ways it is revealed. It is seen in the people we work with, in the products we work together to produce, and in the ever-growing confidence in the voice of a woman who is living in Freedom. We love to use this space of a blog to share about beauty in the world around us and what’s inspiring us — words, images, people, things. We’d love to hear what inspires you, too. Let’s us know in the comments below!
Today, we’re sharing one of our favorite Mary Oliver poems and an image captured by travel photographer, Paula Watts, while visiting one of the Sudara partner sewing centers.
The Journey
One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice-
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
“Mend my life!”
each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do-
determined to save
the only life that you could save.
Poem by Mary Oliver