Gratitude… beyond human calculation

November 25, 2015

By Rajasvini Bhansali, former Thousand Currents Executive Director

What we have to be grateful for at Thousand Currents this year is… life.

On November 6^th, two Thousand Currents staff and one Thousand Currents supporter were involved in a serious collision due to the brake failure of our bus while traveling in Meghalaya, India.

Everyone is fine.

Director of Philanthropic Partnerships Rajiv Khanna, Thousand Currents supporter Roveen Bhansali, myself, and everyone else in the bus walked away from the accident, beyond human calculation. Bruised, sprained, whiplashed, shocked, sore, but whole.

We were there attending the Indigenous Terra Madre Conference. Other members of the Thousand Currents team were attending the conference as well – Asia Program Director Trishala Deb, Latin America Program Director Katherine Zavala, and Milvan Aspuac of AFEDES, a Thousand Currents partner in Guatemala. Thankfully, they were not in the bus with us.

At the conference opening, L to R: Milvan, Katherine, Trishala, and Rajiv.

This was the largest-ever global gathering of indigenous people to discuss food and agriculture and it was beyond inspiring! We were there to celebrate indigenous wisdom as the key to repairing our broken food systems, and to ensure that everyone (in rich and poor countries alike) has access to healthy and sustainably grown food. We are so grateful to the local health workers, conference organizers, and our colleagues, who took such loving care of us in India before we returned home.

Milvan Aspuac of Thousand Currents partner AFEDES in Guatemala greets other indigenous food producers at the conference.

To say that this Thanksgiving is special to us cannot contain our experience over the last few weeks. Our hearts are overflowing with this affirmation of life, and the abundance of blessings that has overwhelmed us since the accident – our beloved family and friends, our partners in the Global South, our Thousand Currents supporters, the food that nourishes us, the sun that shines on us, the ancestors that hold us, the kindness that follows us.

Celebrating life, L to R: Trishala, Vini, Milvan and Katherine

We walked away.

And now, we walk forward, with our partners, with your support.

We walk forward with only love and a gift beyond measure – life itself.

In gratitude,

Vini

P.S. We know some of you may want to share love and concern. We greatly appreciate people reaching out to us, but so as not to overwhelm our team, kindly share your messages via the comments box below.