Sow seeds came about after my first ever trip to Bangladesh. Born in the UK I decided to visit my home land for the first time after 32 years. My mother passed away a year before and I left the UK to learn more about her and the country she grew up in. I left with an open mind to meet all the people she knew and visit all the places she visited.
I was overwhelmed by my visit having met two of her close friends who lived in mud huts made of clay, straw and tin. Neither had close access to water and had been living in these conditions for decades over. I listened attentively to their stories about how they played together, had tea together, how my mother sacrificed her education to look after her siblings while her mother went to work. I realised my mother actually had a poor upbringing initially. I wondered why I did not pay attention to the stories about her friends, her day to day struggles as a child and adolescent, why I perceived the needy in Bangladesh as a people or place so far away with a host of stories distant to my imagination.
I started to understand who my mother was. Why she wanted to help the needy and contribute to helping improve the lives of those she knew and didn’t know but had full empathy for. She had an understanding of the common people and the poverty that is on the ground and effecting people on a day to day basis. She was poor herself once upon a time. She experienced empathy that I only started to sense now. I felt a huge sadness that I couldn’t be a part of her quest assuming the greater causes were in war torn areas. I felt a deep sense of responsibility to make a difference.
I followed their story, their footsteps as they pointed out at the neighbouring pond where they bathe; I looked out desperately for their water source, a well, a tap, something. I watched as a man carried a long stick along his shoulder with Jerry cans filled with water he collected from a far away well. I wondered for how many decades he had been carrying water on a daily basis. She pointed at the tin roofs with holes. I imagined her running with buckets and pots under each leaking hole and then running out of pots. The walls made of clay and straw and tin seemed too weak to withstand the monsoon rain and winds.
I kept telling myself it can’t be that difficult. They simply needed a well and a house made of bricks to meet basic living standards. So I asked the locals. They explained those in absolute poverty only received cash handouts or made money by odd jobs. Not enough to replace the tin in a whole years wage. It occurred to me that this was a daily poverty cycle that could only be broken by those who have the money.
I immediately took on two projects for 2017-2018. A house with a well, and a roof replacement project. This was the start of sow seeds….
Sow seeds became an opportunity to break the poverty cycle and change the day to day stories of those trying to come out of daily poverty. We started with the intentions:
- This is a shared venture. We complete the project and oversee it. Our donors make an intention to contribute in their name or on behalf of a deceased (in the case of sadaqah jariya) or in someone else’s name. We all bank in the reward for the complete project.
- Every project is selected after thorough assessments by trusted sources on the ground who confirm that a difference would be made in breaking poverty cycles.
- The work is for local people and by local people. All funds (100%) go directly to the selected projects or fund allocation as listed during fundraising.
- The projects are only selected for Zakah eligible individuals or families or communities who will support Zakah eligible individuals by the completion of our projects. Therefore we allow plenty of Zakah and sadaqah and sadqah jariya opportunities.
- We provide you an update on sow seeds with pictures before and after work completion and how it made a difference.
- Projects can be selected from any country where assessments, work and completion can be assured from trusted sources.
The journey begins……
