Tuburan and a Jackfruit

This March I discovered the jack fruit - a most curious fruit.

March was international women's month. And so during this month I attended (and spoke at) several functions and activities by and for women.

One such group that I spent a week with was Tuburan. This is an NGO originally funded by Bishops of the UCCP. The mission of Tuburan is to organise women's groups in poor rural areas. And so the people of Tuburan, which means wellspring, go to the barangays where they teach the local women what an organisation is, how they can structure one themselves, and what their rights are. They talk about things like how to identify the needs in their community - and that they have the right to have a say in how many children they have.



When Tuburan came to one such barangay - the women would barely meet their eyes or share their names. When I met them they were preparing to deliver a presentation in song, dance, drama and speech to their barangay captain, the city mayor, and at least 200 other people. And they did - and were amazing! They held that audience captivated. The most surprised were the husbands. They could hardly believe that it was their wives up there on that stage.




Such was my reaction to the Jack fruit. the part you eat is a small yellow portion. It is very similar in size and shape to a jalapeno pepper. The whole fruit though is huge! and spiky! it is around the size of a watermelon. I never would have guessed where that little fruit had come from.

And so it is with so many women I have met. Seeing the amazing empowered people they are now - one can hardly imagine earlier events in their lives.

So here's to all the incredible women I have known - Who lead and guide and stand up fr us all - without even hinting at what the had to go through to become who they are now - and the sources of wellspring that helped!