Paris airport. February 2001. I'm standing on a panel floor. Upper level. Leaning my little head against a railing that secures the corridor and looking around. Tall glass walls bring the light of the day for the busy people pulling their suitcases around down below me. Planes taking off and landing on the grey runway outside.
My parents call me pushing my baby brother in a pram. I squeeze my stuffed otter toy and run after them. I take a grip on my dad's hand as we walk towards our gate. On my right I see a big big panda bear.
"Mom, dad, what is that panda doing in here?" I ask and point towards it.
"It's a WWF fundraiser panda that you can fill with coins that make all the pandas happy" my mom explains. That gets me interested.
"Can I give a coin to the panda? Please?"
My parents smile and look into their wallets. Neither has coins on them. But they decide to support my idea of caring for pandas and we all head to a shop to break a bill into coins. But in the window of the shop I find the most beautiful and yummy looking Eiffel Tower shaped lollipop ever. A pile of different colored Eiffel Tower lollipops. And my little girl eyes see nothing more than those sugary treats.
"Mom! Mom! I want that lolly!" I tell her excited as she returns from the cashier with a one euro coin that she gives to me. My mother inhales.
"But you have only one coin. You can get the lollipop, but then you can't give the money to the pandas. Or you can give the money to the pandas but then you can not buy the lolly. You can decided, but you can't do both" she explains to me. My shoulders drop out of frustration.
"But I really want to do both!" I tell her sad. My mom who could give me another coins decides to give me a lifelong lesson instead. She shakes her head and tells me I need to make a choice. I take a look at the delicious lollipop, so orange and big.
"If I give the money to the pandas, the pandas will be happy?" I ask. My parents nod. So I sigh and walk out of the store. I go up to the panda box. My parents lift me up as I drop the coin in. It disappears and I get confused. I want my coin back. I can't see any happy pandas, I have been fooled! I start almost tearing up and tell my parents to get me my coin back, I'll go buy the lolly!
"It's okay. You may not see it now, but you just helped someone" my dad tells me. "I think that you made some pandas really happy with that coin".
I look deeply into the eyes of that panda. I think about the coin. I think about pandas eating lollipops.
"Do you feel happy to make the pandas happy?" mom asks. I smile a little, nod, pet the plastic panda and then we walk away.
It's been a radio silence for a few weeks now. I have been busy having a new job (I will tell you more about that later) so no time for writing. But today is my mom's birthday and I have been planing on writing a post of how I began to do what I do, for example in Africa, or in Finland with my book money. How it all started years ago...
This moment in Paris airport is one of my early memories. It was a trip we had to make for my dad's job and as I was big on losing my sleep if I was too excited about something, my parents never told me anything before the actual morning something happened. I was carried to the car while sleeping because we had an early morning flight and they did not dare to wake me up. So I woke up at the Helsinki airport, super confused as you can guess... I don't really remember anything else from that trip than a bad tasting chocolate croissant and watching kids' programs in french at nights, but that panda and how my parents handled the situation has really stayed in my mind for good. My parents don't realize this but during those 10 minutes they gave me a really important lesson. A lesson that has been following me in my life ever since. They taught me the happiness of giving, how you get something back from giving too. They taught me how it is important to share, to give from your own to someone who has less. And to me that is the most important lesson they ever gave me while growing up.
Coming back home to Finland, to the countryside where there was no one around my age in the neighborhood, I was again very lonely. My brother was so very tiny too. But one day we were out on the yard playing with our stuffed dogs as our mom was doing some yard work. Suddenly I see a dog running by our fence. My inner animal lover was running to the fence faster than any rational thought. Luukas following my lead as a sibling we reached to pet the dog that was very interested in us. And soon there was this couple standing by the fence. It clarified that they had moved on the other side. A dream come true. I decided that this dog was going to be my best buddy. We went to pet the dog - Doris - at the fence a lot and the nice couple once lifted us over the fence. A little did we know that was a life changing moment to all of us.
Over the years we visited the couple - Oili and Seppo - a lot. They lifted us over the fence to play games, read books, hang out with Doris, paint pine cones, bake cinnamon rolls and (most importantly) eat crepes they always made for us. We spent there a lot of time when our parents were at work or travelling. Laying on the sunny balcony listening all these travel stories they had all around the world, build snow castles in the winter and later on doing homework after school. And of course this bond we had formed with the older couple living behind the fence got our parents into getting to know Oili and Seppo too. They also found out that Oili and Seppo were working in Zimbabwe, Africa a lot and had a boy there they had met and decided to pay his education. My parents got interested in this too and they agreed to get a little girl too. Chipo, my African sister. I remember seeing a picture of her as I was maybe 6 years old and thinking that it's weird that she is a girl but has so short hair, as I had long, brown waves. I got explained why, but I claimed that I want to have a sister with hair. Later on I learned that the hair doesn't play such a big role in sisterhood.
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| My sister Chipo goofing around with me <3 |
Slowly the society called Zimbabwe Aids-orphans society became bigger. More sponsors, more children. I remember my dad sitting long nights making web sites and mom and Oili pressing shirts with the logo by hand ironing. Soon became the shipping containers that we packed full with donations like computers, medical supplies, mobiles, clothes, toys, shoes, school equipment and everything possible. Those containers became a yearly thing. As the meetings. The group of memberships got bigger each year. Tho the only thing I was excited in those meetings was the African food I got to eat with hands. My parents later on got another sponsor child too - Nomore, a boy in my brother's age group. And when there was too many kids for Oili and Seppo to connect with just driving around the streets of Dzivarasekwa the serious fundraising business got going - and companies, governments, cities, people around the world helped. And the building of a Dzikwa Activity Center began. Today about 400 orphans are given the possibly of daily warm meals, healthcare, IT-lessons, extra lessons, sports, cultural hobbies and so many more things in the Dzikwa Activity Center.
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| Da family! And it's like 2012 so we all look so different.. :D |
So yeah, I have been in Africa many times. First with my family, filming documents for raising money and travelling around. (Those documents have been sold and shown in public situations and have collected money for the society.) Africa never left me after that trip. I wrote my finals in high school and jumped into the plane again. I moved there for a few months that spring. Living there I got so many friends and met amazing people. I learned the language and culture. Had the time of my life. We also recorded a CD full of songs the Dzikwa choir had learned. I filmed some music videos and took a lot of pictures that have been used for pr purposes. I also got to meet this little 3 year old girl called Betty, who had been left for Nomore's mom's care. And I immidiately bonded with that little girl. As Beauty - Nomore's mom - already had Nomore and his sister Nomatter (also a very good friend of mine) I promised Betty that I can pay for her education when she is old enough to go to school. And in March earlier this year was my time to come back again. This time with Arno. For filming a commercial video for Dzikwa. My little girl had also turned 5 so she started school. How happy were we to get to be together. And she was such a brave little one. So proud of her. And so proud to be paying for her education. Even as I am a student and young and that sometimes means working hard for my money. Never would I give my little one up. I can sure tell you more about my sweet girl and all the adventures in Africa in another post.
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| Betty <3 |
My parents never forced me to give things away, do charity or donate money. They supported me through it all. I always got to make my own decisions. Sometimes they have also tried to hold me back. After all I am pretty young. For example as I had written my third book and found a publisher I wanted to make an agreement of donating all the money to build a new children's hospital - after all my book is about an anorectic girl and I have become to notice how the mental illness care is sometimes pretty inadequate in our country. But my parents wanted me to hold my horses. It is hard making money as a youngster - and I was 17. I could donate a little bit but I should keep some money for myself, to ease of my finances. I know that they meant well. But I knew I could make my money too as any teenager or young adult; by working hard in a normal day job. I also figured that the book would not be a big deal anyway so I would not get rich with it. (Little did I know that later it got nominated for a literacy price - didn't win tho - and was sold out from stores fast) So I made a contract that gave 100% of the money to the children's hospital building project. I got told by many people that I should not do that, I should think about my future kids - what if they need to sleep in old strollers because I gave all my money away.. Well, at least now that they finally got enough funds to build the hospital, I will have a great new children's hospital to take my children to. So no, it's not so black an white. And even if it has been hard with money from time to time with private schools, travelling, camera equipment, rent and everything, I would not do any differently now.
My parents helped me see how it is sometimes nicer to give away and share than greed it all to yourself. They worked long hours to take care of me, my brother, our horses and my two African siblings. But still in the breakfast table they always gave the last piece of bread or bacon to each other or us. They shared, constantly, in everyday life. They taught us the beauty of being humble, instead of piling stuff on our own plates only thinking ourselves, they fought about who would get to give the last piece away if splitting equally wasn't an option (my parent never really fought each other). The caring for each other was always put before their own needs, even when it came to the last toast in the bag (and just to make it clear, we were okay on money so no lack of food either, thankful for that). And that have we also taken to our relationship with Arno. We share, everything, he can get my last bite if he needs it more than I do and vice verse.
So yeah, I am who I am and where I am now because of them and Oili and Seppo behind the fence. And to look back on how I got molded from that little girl thinking about the lollipop in a shop, I am happy I can see further than my own nose now.
But hey happy birthday again mom! <3
Hugs
Ps. Did you know that pandas are not endangered anymore. They got deleted from the list this year. So every coin matter!
