I design and so I become...

This short video of Jason Silva shared with me by our Marketing Director takes a very simple reality and explains it so well I had to share with all of you.  Enjoy!

For many years, I have traveled the world for various reasons and lived in many different communities.  The many lives of "me" I would say.

When I returned from each one of my tips, my family, in Canada at the time would say I had become someone different.  They would suggest that I had changed who I was, to become something different and that somehow bothered me.  I felt that they were saying I had lost something of myself when I felt I was more of my "self".  I felt they were saying I was not true to myself because I had come back looking different, talking differently, eating different food and sharing new ideas.  I explained that I was still the "self" they knew before, but that I had grown during my trip, that this growing had added more to my "self".

Years later. I now see that what was happening after those trips is still happening, my consciousness and yours expands to include the people, places, and ideas we are exposed to much like the fellow in this video discusses.  I question previous ideas, expose my "self" to new ones and expand.

Through my exposure to what my life experiences have presented to me, I have designed a self that incorporates all I've learned survival, friendship, love, success, peace, determination, and gratitude.  These are some of the tools of my "design".  With or without my knowledge of what I have expanded into, I have "become."  I say "without" because we are not always aware of how we are affected by what comes our way.

If who I "become" is not dynamic by honoring and incorporating the effects of the "design" I've created, then I think I would be dead or just not truly living.

-Anna Marie

Number 1, creating opportunity where there are none, is incredibly rewarding. Even now 7 years after we started organizing our women's co-op in Nabapur, India. The number of women in the co-op at Nabapur has remained roughly around 270 for the last 4 years. However, there is a lot more work, so most of them are now working full time. 

Many of them earn more than their husbands. We had some families move for a variety of reasons and trained new replacements as needed. We still have a long list of hopefuls waiting for their chance to earn from home..for an opportunity.

We have found 270 to be our capacity in this community because we are limited by space in the community center. We are hoping someday we will have enough money to build a larger center to accommodate more women training, inventory, yarn storage...however, we have expanded to a 2nd community in called Atcara which is about 2 hours away.

Atcara, Shanty village is now organized and training is almost complete with the 6 women we found to have some knitting background to coach there. This village is unique in that it is not only composed of lower caste or untouchables but they also have gypsy heritage. I found many to have Aztek like features. They are known for their ability to sing to snakes. Most families have a variety of snakes that they keep for entertainment, protection from rodents and for cultural activities. We visited with them last May and were both delighted and heartbroken to meet these beautiful women.

In the midst of extreme poverty, they were so very gracious and welcoming to us. Jaya told me it is really hard for these people both men and women to find work because many Indians do not want anything to do with them. She said sometimes they do work and are not paid and other times the money is just tossed at them because many will not come near them.

When we got there Aroti who will be the leader of this co-op, who herself is a community organizer here had set-up a drop in clinic in her home and had arranged to have over 220 children vaccinated for Polio that day.

We are so excited to be working with her as she is very compliant and has a big heart for the women of this village. She was in tears when we explained what we had done in Nabapur and told her we wanted to grow the project to include her women. Among the mango and lychee trees we shared our vision for this project expansion and today there are 6 new coaches who have learned 10 new patterns.

We hope to introduce new products next year at the 2016 Housewares Show in Chicago. They have also learned to knit our best seller the Scrub Cloths in the traditional dishcloth pattern to support the production currently in Nabapur. By the end of this year, we expect to have 36 women begin production as our 6 coaches take on their first trainees.

-Anna Marie Stauss

-Anna Marie Stauss

-Anna Marie Stauss

I think another expression for what is a woman should include “MacGyver” in it.  So who is MacGyver?  He was a TV show about a fellow who was a detective that got himself into the impossible situations and with the help of seemingly useless stuff like rubber bands, trash, and paperclips he was able to save the day.  Really!!!

I feel like that every day and for some reason especially after I had kids that the  natural “MacGyer” skill became that much more necessary.  They say there is no such thing as original thought so maybe the expression, “Necessity is the Mother of Invention” is the old way of expressing “MacGyver” for women.

I find my Toockies to be one of my go-to products when trying to solve these types of problems just as “MacGyver” on the show depended on rubber bands.  I use my Toockies scrub cloths to do the following: Scrub everything in my house without scratching them; scrub grass stained knees without hurting the kids;  remove dirty hand prints from texture walls and actually getting it all;  clean the stinky refrigerator and high chair without beach or detergent just dish soap; sliders for moving my furniture around (way better than the round plastic things); pot holder, trivet, napkin, cork a hole, pick up rosebush cuttings, blankets for my daughters dollies, burp pad and wipe, sooo…a must have for a diaper bag; scrub lime from chicken’s water can, clean garden tools,  potting mesh…sometimes wonder what I would take with me into the wilderness if I could only take a few items.  As a young woman I working in the Jungles of Nigeria, Africa on a forestry project and was always looking for just the right things to take with me that I could serve multiple functions because I couldn’t carry a lot and apart from a large knife, swiss army knife, rope, a sturdy plastic bag, thin tarp and mosquito net, small first aid kit, extra pair of socks and good boots I would take a Toockies Cloth.  No matter what stage of life you're in you will be surprised at how often you reach for a Toockies Cloth once you have them out of simple necessity and the “MacGyer” in you.

In gratitude,
Anna Marie Stauss

One day I went to my neighbors yard to call her to come play and I saw white fluffy cloths in the dump out side her orchard. I was so curious about the cloths that I went into this pile of…well I’d rather not say and saw Kleenex tissues for the first time.   My neighbors had visitors visiting from overseas, and I imagined that the place they came from was wonderful because it must of had so many of those Kleenex that they could afford to dirty them and dispose of them. I hoped that their presence was going to lead to me having some of those cloths someday.

When I was walking through the little village of Nabapur, I so remembered that feeling of hope. These beautiful children were so curious to see someone from overseas walking into their homes and talking to their mothers. They followed us around with looks of wonder and excitement in their eyes. Hope that somehow, something new was coming into their lives and that it would be wonderful. Who’s to say where how that hope will drive their imaginations. My hope is still driving mine.

In gratitude,
Anna Marie Stauss

The simple path to joy begins with a smile. Even in the most desperate places we can find joy in that simple expression. On my recent trip to India, I visited a small village of untouchables of the lowest cast called Atakara. It's about  two hours drive from Kolkata, India. This village is known for snake charmers.

Walking through the village I was astounded by the level of poverty and the overflowing generosity of spirit so freely given. Just a few steps to the village I had a following of smiling children wanting to walk through the village with me and hold my hand. How sweet is the taste of joy? It is the willing touch that opens the light of a smile.

In gratitude,
Anna Marie Stauss