To this moment, the outcome of this project has never felt as uncertain as it does now.
Why is that?
There’s momentum from my research.
There’s support from my community.
People want to share their stories.
Yet, I feel unsure of where it will all lead.
A call I had with someone last week, who was captivated by the project, said this to me:
“It’s a shame that you don’t have any funding for this project.”
Why must it be a shame? Sure, it would have been nice for my gas mileage and other project-related expenses to be covered through an organization’s grant.
But it is our constraints that ultimately bring creativity to our pursuits.
Without them, we wouldn’t know where to begin.
Indeed, I don’t know what the outcome is as of now, but that only helps me double down on the process. Perhaps the process will lead to policy changes, or maybe have community members share their family’s immigration story.
Perhaps it would bring about a culture of understanding.
Unpredictability and discomfort can be scary, but they allow me to continue experimenting and discover what truly matters in the end.
If I do my job— and if I do it well— the success will come naturally, however it may appear.
What I should focus on instead is sharing valuable stories with my community to the best of my ability.
Maybe that’s all that is asked of me at the moment.