My week's focus has been a refreshing one.

This has been a different week, a good week, an energizing week as I have had a change in pace, a change I have enjoyed.  It has been because my focus has been on a three day consultation regarding refugee rights held here in Bangkok.  Its participants came from many different countries.  We may have come from many places but we were all bound together by our work and passion for helping refugees throughout the Asia-Pacific region.  I could feel the shared energy and passion of these three days and I found it refreshing.  


Yes, the topic is harsh as it touches on not nice things in life.  It is about a basic human quest by ones dispossessed, persecuted and unwanted in our world to find a corner in the world where they can live their lives in safety and with dignity.  They are doing what any of us would do if life has become too dangerous or intolerable - look for other options.  Maybe that is too simple, but why complicate matters? 

The three days dealt with serious matters around human security and dignity.  A message I hold central is that no matter the level of human misery or desperation, hope has to remain.  Otherwise, what have you got left? 

In the midst of our serious work and of our genuine concern for desperate people, the smiles, the humor, the friendship, the common human bonds among us were also obvious.  It was good to be there even with ones who are suffering so much loss and are living in the midst of such fear and uncertainty.  This reflects the nature of life for any of us.  The truth is that we are all vulnerable and that we all know the plethora of life's stories and experiences, the nice and the not so nice.

Then I take hope when I hear a Congolese man talk about his journey of fleeing danger in the Congo. He finally found a place he could call home where he could establish a life for him and his family.  It took him over 10 years to do so but he did it.  And you know what?  While he loves where he is and is grateful for what he now enjoys, he looks forward to the day when his country is transformed and he can return to the place that he still truly calls home.  He is the eternal optimist.  When  we hear such stories, why wouldn't we hang onto hope and keep sharing that smile and passion for life no matter what we face?