My name is Sarah. Your name is Sarah too.

I lay in my bed unemployed and hopeless. I look up and see this wooden plaque that my aunt made for me. It triggers a thought. “Princess Sarah”, it says. Now, I know that I was not born to a royal family but there is something in a name… My name is Sarah. Sarah means princess. My name means princess.. Now, I am not claiming my parents to be prophetic, nor am I claiming that I have always been a little princess, but my name means princess. That must mean something.

I love names and appreciate the different names given to children all over the world. Some names means peace, some mean victorious, some mean strength, others mean love, some mean courage. My name means princess. So, I continue to think of the women all around the world and the gift that I would like to give each woman today is my name. Each of you is a princess. Each of you is a Sarah. Here’s to a name so sweet and so appropriate for all. Here’s to all the Sarah’s out there who are unemployed. Here’s to you, Sarah with AIDS. And to my Sarah’s who are mothers, wives, laborers, here’s to you. May we each find the Sarah within. No matter what name the world has given you, or what role you play, may you never forget that you are a princess.

Closing Women's Shelters in Afghanistan

Afgan Proposal Would Clamp down on Women's Shelters

This NY Times article explains the rigid qualifications that women must make to get into a women's shelter, should this law pass. I think that one concept that the article fails to emphasize is Afghanistan's growth in this area. A decade ago, a women's shelter could not be found in that country, and now women have been given the opportunity to find a safe haven where they could start their own life. Much growth is seen if you look deep in what this article is really saying.