On Monday June 29^th, I had the privilege of attending the More Impact Awards luncheon as a member of press representing CBS News. This is the type of event I have wanted to attend for a long time. An event dedicated to celebrating incredible women and even more importantly, an event inspiring ordinary and extraordinary women to join forces and empower women both on a national and global scale.

The More Impact Awards stood out to me because of the type of women it celebrated. The four award winners, each outstanding in their individual capacity serve as agents of change and empowerment but also as figures of inspiration to young leaders such as myself who is determined to make an impact in my community and my country, South Africa.

One of the four award winners was African born Vivian Adhiambo Onano. At the age of 24 she has established herself as a women’s and girl’s advocate and youth leader. Her passion for educating young girls and achieving gender equality in Africa inspires me as an African-Indian woman leader also passionate about education for all - especially those that are not afforded the opportunity to education.

Through the South Africa Washington- International Program (SAWIP), I have been given the opportunity to gain global work exposure in Washington DC during the summer. SAWIP develops young African leaders and equips us with the tools necessary to network and gain access to global perspectives. Thus, it is through SAWIP that I am afforded my work exposure at CBS News and through CBS news that I am able to meet inspiring women leaders who are making an impact globally.

Michelle Obama’s remarks at the Newseum for the More Impact awards motivated me to think more critically about the impact I want to have on the world. Her latest project; “Let Girls Learn”, is directed towards educating adolescent girls. The project will first address the issues in Cambodia around education for women and girls then move to other countries in Africa.

As a South African woman I am exposed to the daily hardships that women and children in my country face. One of the most pressing issues is that of education. I am privileged enough to be able to gain tertiary level education – something that my grandmothers and my mother struggled with.

When my grandmother was in high school her mother insisted on taking her out of school despite attempts from the school principle to encourage my grandmothers continued education. I remember my grandmother telling me this story with so much passion as she encouraged me to always study hard at whatever it is I choose and to make sure I become successful and give back.

Thinking back to my conversations with my grandmother and linking it to Michelle Obama’s remarks I am renewed with inspiration to raise awareness and motivate young women to pursue an education and in doing so enrich their lives and the lives of their communities.

1 week in Capitol Hill and I feel almost settled! I have let go of my traditional Indian food and embraced the culture of food around me. I have had tacos, baked potatoes, gazpacho, bagels, pasta, pizza, subway and a hot dog. The tacos and pasta were among my favourites!

But now I miss my Indian dhar’s, veggies, curries, rice and rothli. So it’s time to explore the eastern food culture in DC. I found some Thai places and Indian places that I hope to try out this week. A colleague at my work placement also said she would bring me some Indian lentils which I cannot wait to cook!

I had great fun this weekend exploring the library of congress, the building of the Supreme Court, the Nationals park stadium and China town.

The art work and architecture of the library of congress is so far the most intriguing. The building is beautifully designed and the interior is equally aesthetic, if not more. The symbolism in the design adds to the value of the building and truly reflects the greatness of Jefferson’s personal library collection.

I also got my Library of Congress readers card, so I can now go into the private reading room where I hope to do some work on my mini-thesis.

The Supreme Court is built of marble. This was one of the hottest places I have been to. I found the grand entrance door to be especially interesting. It has a story of symbols engraved on it.

The next stop was the Nationals Park Stadium where I experienced a vibrancy of music and festivities.

I bought a nationals cap that I proudly wore throughout the game and waved it when my team won. I also enjoyed my first American veggie dog at the game  After the game the team stopped off at China Town to do some exploring. It was a relaxing afternoon filled with food and fun.

I left my Cape Town home on Sunday June 14th and made my way to Washington DC by Monday June 15th where I met with some really friendly and welcoming host parents.

Arriving in DC was much anticipated after the long flight and excitement that was peaking among my SAWIP 2015 team.

I drove home to the Capitol city where I am currently staying with my host mom Kay. I am enjoying engaging with her.

She showed me how to use the Metro which was helpful especially on my first day at work. I managed to navigate my way to work quite easily and found the locals to be of great help. Some of the new things I have learnt in DC are the general traveling etiquette. For example, when we take the escalator , it's a strictly enforced rule that we stand on the right to leave room on the left for people in a hurry. And of course eating and drinking is not allowed on the metro or busses. Surprisingly everyone abides by this rule. I'm not too sure if it is enforceable in South Africa, but it may be a great way to enhance pest control in public transport.

My most exciting moment so far has been my first day at work, Tuesday June 16th. I am an intern at CBS news where I will be working in the special events unit. Upon arrival at CBS, I met Robert, the security guard. He was friendly and immediately spotted my nerves which he easily calmed with his welcome. Robert embodied the essence of what my mentor Robin Sharma calls " leading without a title".

A few years ago I attended a conference by Sharma when he came to Cape Town. Here Sharma shared with me the notion of service leadership. He spoke about leading without a title which means being the best that you can be in what ever you do, essentially.

So my experience with Robert, the security at CBS news, reflected this leadership without a title. Robert is the best person for his job! He does it excellently and just knowing that he is at the front desk each morning , gives me great energy when arriving at work.

The next person I met is January. An intern from Florida whose place I will be taking as she leaves this week. January introduced me to everyone and took me on a tour of the offices. She was also really welcoming . In fact everybody at CBS News is welcoming! My supervisors Nicole and Kia are fabulous !

Kia heads up the special events unit and is truly just the most bubbly and supportive person that a foreigner could meet. She has this vibrant energy that makes me excited to be at work each day. She is also very caring. She noticed that I had a fever as I am sick with the flu, and rushed me to the CVS ( pharmacy) where she bought me a thermometer and some other things to help my recovery. I have never heard of any supervisor doing this for their intern on their very first day . I am most blessed and grateful for being part of the CBS family for the next 6weeks.

I write to learn, reflect and share my experiences and knowledge. It is a journey not a destination. In my writing I have the freedom to express myself in the form I find most comfortable. Sometimes it is reflection, sometimes poetry and sometimes it is an article. However, which ever form my writing takes, I am sharing.

I share to inspire, teach and learn. It may be that I am going to Washington D.C for one month – this piece of information that sounds so dreamlike to me, but my story has the power to inspire.

I have two younger brothers still in school. To them I am a sister, mother, teacher, nag (at times), cleaner and role model. No matter how many times they hear my stories, each time they take something different from it. I recently found out that when my mother asked my youngest brother what he wants to do after school he replied saying, “I want to be a leader”.

I was amazed at this response. It still takes me by surprise when I think back to it but the beauty in his response is that although he does not know what he wants to be, he knows he wants to be a leader.

I think I have enough revenue to say that some how in my endless SAWIP schedule, my commitment to my literature studies and community engagements, I have managed to inspire my little brother. It has been my life long goal to be an outstanding role model to my siblings and to lead by example. It makes me so happy to finally have some hope of achieving my goal towards them.

Although I may not have access to all the naughty little boys and girls in school, my stories and sharing and telling and caring has inspired someone and this someone will continue the cycle and inspire others in his circle and through this continuous wave, one individual can help to shape the youth of South Africa.

I can only control my outcome and pray that I will inspire others to pursue their greatness. Through this, I hope that I will spark the interest of younger leaders.

A Poem, dedicated to Miriam Lichterman.

I decided to share my writing process. A process called "Free writing" , one of the most therapeutic activities that I find both productive and healing. I have also shared my 6 step guide to writing your own free-write !

I attended an interesting seminar presented by UCT African Dance lecturer; Maxwell Xolani Rani. As a student of the Arts and dance lover, I found Rani’s seminar particularly engaging as it appealed to my love for community upliftment through recreational forms of art and sport. Rani spoke about using dance to heal and educate. This is something I believe is most necessary in rural communities and communities where youth don’t have access to education that is delivered in a way that speaks to them. Thus, through dance, sport, art, poetry , music, communities may engage in a variety of troublesome issues that formal education may not allow them to express comfortably. Furthermore, growing up in a province that was distant to my family and indian culture, I found that my cultural identity was easy to express through dance. So I taught dance to my fellow class mates at school and university where I was able to connect with them through a passion for dance. I later started a holiday dance program for the young girls in my community, District six. My dance program attracted girls across different ages races and cultures. Although I taught Bollywood dancing, many of my learners were excited to explore different avenues of dance as well. This was a huge achievement in motivating the girls to pursue a hobby as many of them use to sit around on the corners of the street and watch while the boys played soccer and cricket. Dance has served me through its therapeutic elements and I feel that it has the power to reconcile the oppressed in South Africa as well. As Rani said, “Arts doesn’t have borders or boundaries, therefore it is able to change perceptions” and transform ideologies. The Arts gives me a voice through which I may express myself. It transforms my feelings and ideas into a mode that is expressively informative and therefore, enables me to access my education through fluidity.

I am currently working on a paper about the narrative; Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, written by Harriet Jacobs. This narrative describes the events that happened to Linda Brent, a slave who suffered among other things, the objectifying sexual oppression by her slave master Dr. Flint.

Jacobs’ narrative is not one of a traditional American Slave genre. It instead challenges the reader to distinguish for her/himself, the moral obligations that we as a free society, must stand up to.

The issues of silence by both free black and free white people during slavery highlight the lack of action that we take when we feel disconnected to such issues.

First we were colonised and enslaved, then we were separated (apartheid), now we are xenophobic. This cycle of oppression needs clarity. I feel that it is through a lack of awareness and empathy that we, free black South Africans, are now oppressing our African neighbours.

The strength in unity is what grows us as a continent. We need to fight against the insecurities we face as a country and channel it into positive progress. By defending our job opportunities with violence and false sense of fear, we simply do to our brothers and sisters, what was done unto us.

As Jacobs’ narrative emphasises the need to educate and communicate our fears and oppression, I believe that we as South African’s need to re-educate and continue to communicate our fears of oppression. Each generation has a different struggle that must be fought. But the ways, in which we fight, must be ways that ring true to our progress.

We have overcome slavery; we have overcome apartheid, now we must overcome our sense of superiority that we feel reigns over our African neighbours.

Together we will be stronger, together we will grow faster, so together we must fight, for freedom and equality for all.

Finding solutions to the psychological trauma facing South Africans at large.

A new perspective into the state of the South African ‘crisis’ as a result of past trauma's that have not been adequately addressed.