Bajalia

What's in a name?

The Bajalia name is big part of my story. I spoke of my grandmother in an earlier post but now you need to know that the Bajalia name comes from Elias Bajalia, my maternal grandfather. 

The name Bajalia comes from the city where he was born in Palestine that is right near Ramallah. The city is "Beit Jala".  "Beit" in arabic means house and "Jala" means glory. It is believed that this city located in close proximity to shepherds field in Bethlehem, was one of the first cities that "saw the glory" of the angels announcing the coming of Christ that Christmas night as told in Luke Chapter 2. 

But the real reason I named my company Bajalia is because of my grandfathers love for women.  I was raised in a very strict and sometimes backward culture that placed a very high value on male sons, like most of the places I work in today. My grandfather had 5 daughters, and the only son he had died at only a few days old. I watched and heard many of the arab men laugh and joke at his "misfortune". How sad he was that he did not have a son to carry on his name they would jeer. But my grandfather held his head up proudly and would always comment - " I would not trade one of my daughters for a thousand of your sons".  This comment came to my memory one day while I was in India and I heard a blessing to a woman "May you be the mother of 100 sons".  One of the greatest blessings a woman could be given and I must admit it made me sick.

As I traveled the world with all of the missing women, aborted girls, trafficked girls and violence to women,  I remember my grandfather's proud love and acceptance of us women.  I also watched as my grandfather was one of the few who did not force any of his daughters to marry against their will which was also rare for that time, he wasn't perfect but his love for us was a great comfort when so many other arab men in my life thought women were second class. 

Somewhere deep in my heart that love and compassion took root when so many others, treated me as mere chattel, or even worse, nameless and voiceless. 

So now I think of my grandfather often as our company grows and the legacy he now has to his name, as people announce the name Bajalia proudly. It stands for so much, but to me it is a legacy to a man who loved women well and deserves to have his name carried forth in a radical and honoring way. It is interesting that each culture I go to has a similar word or thinks this word is their own. In Hindi I was told this sounds much like a word that means "I am rescued" so our company seems to have a name that resonates with so many. 

As we near our full court press launch and HSN launch, my grandfather is no longer with us on this earth but I think of how many people will be hearing that name and wonder about it so I want the story to be told, a man who respected and loved his daughters and granddaughters when so many did not is worthy of this kind of legacy to his name. Wonder who will be laughing at him now, and who knows what a son may have done to his name?

Santa Clause fought human trafficking

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Santa Clause it seems is the original abolitionist!  I love that and am reminded of this story and encouraged and hope you are to hear how he fought for women.

The true story begins with Nicholas, who was born during the third century in the village of Patara. At the time the area was Greek and is now on the southern coast of Turkey. His wealthy parents, who raised him to be a devout Christian, died in an epidemic while Nicholas was still young. So he himself was also an orphan. Obeying Jesus' words to "sell what you own and give the money to the poor," Nicholas used his whole inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, and the suffering. He dedicated his life to serving God and was made Bishop of Myra while still a young man. Bishop Nicholas became known throughout the land for his generosity to the those in need, his love for children, and his concern for sailors and ships.

Now this is the part of his story that is near and dear to my heart. People tell of how Nicholas knew of a poor man with three daughters. In those days a young woman's father had to offer prospective husbands something of value—a dowry. The larger the dowry, the better the chance that a young woman would find a good husband. Without a dowry, a woman was unlikely to marry. This poor man's daughters, without dowries, were therefore destined to be sold into slavery. Mysteriously, on three different occasions, a bag of gold appeared in their home-providing the needed dowries.

Working in the store yesterday I sold a wall hanging to my friend Glenn for his wife that was a dowry piece, made for an orphan girl by women in a village in Kutch as she had no one to help her prepare her dowry. We had a long conversation about dowries and different traditions in Jewish cultures, arab cultures and other indigenous tribes I am familiar with.

Still today women around the world in many places are considered worthless without a dowry, and in India there are still many brides that are burned when their dowries are not sufficient.

So as I think of Saint Nicholas or Santa Clause as many call him I remember how he loved women well. I also think of the women around the world in need of dowries, and orphans in need of a mothers and fathers love, lets all remember - Yes, Virginia - there is a Santa Clause and sometimes it looks like you and me!

" Women hold up Half the Sky "

> "Bajalia is a wonderful example of exactly the kind of enterprise that taps and unleashes the power and economic potential of women." Sheryll WuDunn co- author of Half the Sky.

I have been in constant communication with Sheryl WuDunn, co author of Half the Sky as we think her book tells the stories of why we do what we do better than anyone else.  We needed promotional copies to pass around to our team here and abroad. She is an amazing woman and gave us several things to talk about at our recent HSN meeting including the quote above for us to use. Sheryl also says:

"Half The Sky echoes what Bajalia is doing -- a call to join a movement to create change and make the world a better place -- with specific concrete steps, from starting your own action club to sponsoring young women abroad, fundraising to build schools, helping create new foundations, new women-focused businesses"

Sheryl we couldn’t agree more and love having you on our team and being a part of yours. Thank you too Nicholas Kristoff for continuing to carry the torch keeping global issues up front in the New York Times. You two are truly a power couple!

Great things happen when men and women here and abroad join as a collective force with one voice, We can change the world one entrepreneur at a time.

We are women hear us roar! In numbers too big to Ignore...

Don't worry I won't be asking anyone to do karaoke on stage with me in Dubai, at least not yet.

Pumpkin muffins reminded me of Tata

 

I am smelling the first pumpkin muffins of the season cooking in the oven with fresh vanilla from Madagascar. And I am thinking of my amazing grandmother who I called Tata. Her name is Nijmeh, which was Arabic for “star” the neighbors called her Nellie. She passed on in October 2007 at 93 years old. She was on hospice for many, many days as we tried to assure her in every way that we would be fine without her.
Hospice, said that there was no reason she was still with us- to continue to try to talk her and comfort her into her death. I was at her bed side with my aunts and Mother. I read to her from Revelations, she was clutching a crucifix, but still holding on. We told her stories, thanked her for her influence on our life, laughed and cried and still nothing.

I decided I could sit no longer I had to do something. So I headed to the grocery store early one morning and bought the ingredients for pumpkin muffins, came home and began baking. This inspired my aunts to begin to bake too. We made chocolate chip cookies for the visitors, and banana nut bread, while we took turns at her bedside. With the fragrance of baking in the house and the smell of bananas, pumpkins and cookies my Grandmother somehow knew all would be well with us.

My grandmother taught me so much and I was reminded of the number of women in my family line who were change agents we shared stories of  her bravery.  She was one of the first women in the Ramallah community to come to the US. My grandfather had come 12 years earlier and she waited patiently with my mother who had last seen her father at 10 months. On the boat as it was pulling into Ellis Island my grandmother and mother saw my Grandfather and they rejoiced at the reunion, and began the rest of their families.

We heard stories at her funeral of how many children she mothered during these first years in Jacksonville as she cooked for the whole community of men who had come to the US with their children, while the other women stayed back to hold down the overseas businesses, homes and care for elderly grandparents and great grandparents. One by one as other women made their way through Ellis Island, she was the one that taught them to navigate the new land they were totally unprepared for.
One of my favorite stories my sister Donna reminded us of: “She used to take us on the bus to pay the bills in person downtown and to go shopping. We rode the public bus, and she would count the rows in the bus for us to sit, only the middle, and across the rows if necessary.”

 Donna always wanted to sit in the back of the bus, and she said no that was for those darker than us. We never understood why, until as adults we recalled the story. We realized that night at my grandmothers death bed that Nijmeh, didn’t really understand racism, she thought we all sat on the busses by color, and somehow people were color coded! Whites in the front, brown in the middle and blacks in the back! I love the way she just figured things out, I would like to think I have that skill of hers too.

Tata, we still miss you somehow our family is not as bright without your star shining on us. Every time I bake Pumpkin muffins now I think of you! And yes Tata you would be proud of us we are still cooking and baking and feeding our  friends, loved ones and even our neighbors!

Debbie Met Mindy and Mindy met Sheryl

 "Debbie metMindy" was whispered almost with reverence yesterday through out the conference rooms as I kept being moved from place to place to meet with yet another EVP and SVP, Buyers, Fashion directors, TV Creative, etc. 

I spent the day yesterday at HSN presenting the Bajalia brand, products for March, producer photos and stories and my story about how it all came to be. Lynn, Lauren Bill, John, Jayme, Katy, some new faces and some were relationships brought deeper into a passion for our products. She must meet so and so , can you stay longer, can you wait for Bill, all things I was happy to do not believing how quickly the Bajalia brand was escalating to the top of HSN. I attended a "Style Out" the first vendor I was told who was ever at one of these internal meetings( but I only stayed for my part) so everyone could hear the stories straight from me.

But my highlight of the day was meeting Mindy Grossman. She is the CEO at HSN and was at Polo and Nike before that. I have been watching her work for years in the industry and so impressed how much a visionary she is and how she has taken every brand and company she works for to the next level with style and class.
I felt a bit embarrassed when I finally met her as she walked in to the conference room where I was set up looking amazing wearing a piece of jewelry I had been coveting on air sold by one of the HSN designers Heidi Dass. I noticed the jewelry before I noticed the face. My bad – but then when I realized who I was talking to was quickly asked to tell Mindy about our line.

She was lovely and very complimentary loving and trying on a few pieces. Listened intently to my quick elevator speech and asked many questions about sustainability . She graciously received her very own copy of Half the Sky a gift from me and Sheryl WuDunn and agreed to read it on the plane to Berlin and email me once she had read it.

Only God knows what will happen next as we move Bajalia to the next level with these two powerhouse women helping and strategizing for women globally.

Yesterday was a very good day, “Mindy met Debbie and Mindy met Sheryl.”

Oh the places you will go! As they say in Dr Seuss

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“Congratulations!
 Today is your day.
 You’re off to Great Places!
 You’re off and away! You have brains in your head.
 You have feet in your shoes. 
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
 You’re on your own. And you know what you know.”

I have to confess 8 years ago, I know now - I knew very little, yet I was off to great places. I have been in wonder, in awe and in disgust many times simultaneously. And even now climbing this Bajalia mountain, I know a very little more. I think the people that know the most are the amazing wise women I have learned from over the last 12 or so years. 8 years officially after receiving our non-profit status and 4 years before when I was exploring the world, discovering new and scary truths.

These women have been my teachers, my eyes, my ears and my strength, while I tried to give them voice. What a surprise. Some of them have never had a day in school, yet strive to give their children the knowledge of centuries and of generations before them. In oral cultures the stories are passed down, not the books and degrees and somehow they are wiser than we are.
If it weren’t for them I am not sure I would have still been navigating this maze and climbing this mountain, to hear their words, voice their pain. I want to scream to everyone to look their way, yet they are content to whisper.

They are smart, wise, beautiful, and mostly they know what they know and they have their priorities straight being focused on relationships instead of transactions. I want others to see them for who they are! If I never took them an order, they would be content to sit with me over chai, or bread and share with me out of their simple means and love me, sometimes just holding my hand the entire visit and smiling.

I must admit I love that and often feel more at home in their world than in my US and Orlando world where I have to wait sometimes months just to lunch with a good friend or business associate.
I hope over the years I am learning to love better by loving them well. And by receiving their love, maybe loving myself a little more. I am not sure I have the words to tell the tales of all I have learned and all I have met, but I have been drinking from a fire hose, barely able to drink in all of the wisdom from places I may have never have experienced it before Bajalia.
I wanted to share their wisdom and introduce them to you through our blog.

These are people near and far who have kept me on my path and bumped me back when I was moving too far right or left. I am sure I will continue to be surprised as you will, they are not always who we thought they would be. I think sometimes we look at poverty as a financial issue, yet they can see the poverty of spirit, in us. I hope I can connect the very different women at the place of their poverty and we can all be richer for the experience.

And now to finish the words of, the incomparable Dr. Seuss – there is much wisdom here…

Oh! The Places You’ll Go!
Congratulations!
 Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
 You’re off and away!
You have brains in your head.
 You have feet in your shoes.
 You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
 You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.

You’ll look up and down streets. Look’em over with care. About some you will say, “I don’t choose to go there.” With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet, you’re too smart to go down a not-so-good street.
And you may not find any you’ll want to go down. In that case, of course, you’ll head straight out of town. It’s opener there in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen and frequently do to people as brainy and footsy as you.
And when things start to happen, don’t worry. Don’t stew. Just go right along. You’ll start happening too.

Oh! The Places You’ll Go!
You’ll be on your way up!
 You’ll be seeing great sights!
 You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.
You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed. You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead. Wherever you fly, you’ll be best of the best. Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.
Except when you don’t.
 Because, sometimes, you won’t.

I’m sorry to say so but, sadly, it’s true that Bang-ups and Hang-ups can happen to you.
You can get all hung up in a prickle-ly perch. And your gang will fly on. You’ll be left in a Lurch.
You’ll come down from the Lurch with an unpleasant bump. And the chances are, then, that you’ll be in a Slump.
And when you’re in a Slump, you’re not in for much fun. Un-slumping yourself is not easily done.

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked. Some windows are lighted. But mostly they’re darked. A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin! Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in? How much can you lose? How much can you win?

And if you go in, should you turn left or right…or right-and-three-quarters? Or, maybe, not quite? Or go around back and sneak in from behind? Simple it’s not, I’m afraid you will find, for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.
You can get so confused that you’ll start in to race down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace and grind on for miles across weirdish wild space, headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.

The Waiting Place…for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go or the mail to come, or the rain to go or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow or waiting around for a Yes or No or waiting for their hair to grow. Everyone is just waiting.

Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a kite or waiting around for Friday night or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake or a pot to boil, or a Better Break or a string of pearls, or a pair of pants or a wig with curls, or Another Chance. Everyone is just waiting.

No! That’s not for you!
 Somehow you’ll escape all that waiting and staying. You’ll find the bright places where Boom Bands are playing. With banner flip-flapping, once more you’ll ride high! Ready for anything under the sky. Ready because you’re that kind of a guy!
Oh, the places you’ll go! There is fun to be done! There are points to be scored. There are games to be won. And the magical things you can do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all. Fame! You’ll be famous as famous can be, with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.

Except when they don’t. Because, sometimes, they won’t.
I’m afraid that some times you’ll play lonely games too. Games you can’t win ‘cause you’ll play against you.
All Alone!
 Whether you like it or not, Alone will be something you’ll be quite a lot.
And when you’re alone, there’s a very good chance you’ll meet things that scare you right out of your pants. There are some, down the road between hither and yon, that can scare you so much you won’t want to go on.

But on you will go though the weather be foul. On you will go though your enemies prowl. On you will go though the Hakken-Kraks howl. Onward up many a frightening creek, though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak. On and on you will hike. And I know you’ll hike far and face up to your problems whatever they are.

You’ll get mixed up, of course, as you already know. You’ll get mixed up with many strange birds as you go. So be sure when you step. Step with care and great tact and remember that Life’s a Great Balancing Act. Just never forget to be dexterous and deft. And never mix up your right foot with your left.
And will you succeed?
 Yes! You will, indeed!

(98 and ¾ percent guaranteed.)

Kid, you’ll move mountains!
 So…be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray or Mordecai Ale Van Allen O’Shea, you’re off to Great Places!
 Today is your day!
 Your mountain is waiting.
 So…get on your way!

Bagels, Afghans, and New York

I am in NY, with Business Women from Afghanistan... and if they can make it there they can make it anywhere...
2 and a half years ago as I was thinking about ways to help women in Afghanistan through an organization I work with and I had an idea. The organization is Business Council for Peace (Bpeace) and I do work through them in Afghanistan- you can read more about them on their website http://bpeace.com/. Their basic belief is "more jobs mean less violence".

The idea was for an apprenticeship for Afghan Women businesses to partner with like industry American businesses to increase cultural awareness and industry knowledge, and this idea I believe was divinely inspired, and now it has come to full fruition. The State department got behind this idea and gave BPeace a grant to recruit, train and bring the business associates here, the program has been going on for a year and a half and this is the first week of the apprenticeship. Businesses also got behind the idea and paid some money to help sponsor the associates coming to the US.

This program was designed by BPeace and we selected twelve Afghan Businesswomen who are currently successful business owners within Afghanistan and we partnered with businesses in their various fields including,
furniture manufacturing, food processing, leather goods manufacturing, radio broadcasting, printing, beekeeping and there is even an Oil Woman (Fuel distribution). Together they employ hundreds of women and impact thousands of individuals.

I have been in New York since last Wednesday with my assistant Melissa ( pictured above) who spent 2.5 years in Afghanistan and she is able to use all of her well earned Dari language skills. Our new friends are so impressed with her and I am too. Our translator says she is the only one of 2 people he has ever met that is American and speaks such good Dari.

And of course I keep hearing the words, "you look Afghan", which has endeared me even more to them. My Salaam Allakoum (greeting), is the same in Arabic and Dari so they all think I must speak Dari too, I know a little but our translator and Melissa are keeping busy. All of the women are required to have some conversational English to be allowed to be part of the program, but that is relative.

So far we have discovered, bagels, revolving doors, The Empire State building, Skype to call home, double decker busses, minutes on cellphones don't last long enough to speak to all of the children, (most Afghan women have between 8-10 children), The Statue of Liberty and they all asked to visit Ground Zero and we went to the St. Paul Memorial, it was quite emotional as they know that is the primary reason they are here and able to even run their businesses. They also learned how to use a gift card. Many retailers donated gift cards for them to be able to shop while in the US. We learned what $150.00 US will buy from the Dress Barn.

The program ends on Oct 27th with a huge Party of course, with the State Department, the US Ambadassor to Afghanistan, the host companies and other VIP's.

Keep watching my blog and in a couple of days and I will post photos of the Business Associates in NY as well as some on their apprenticeships.

Pakistan Eye Candy

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For you textile and embroidery buffs, more eye candy from Pakistan. Hard to believe that mostly illiterate women create these bullion patterns in their homes.

> Pakistan Planning

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I had a great time in Pakistan this past week as I discovered new producer groups in Lahore and some absolutely beautiful embroidery called bullion. It looks like chunks of gold and beads elaborately decorated. This couple are the people who started their business to help women who were begging at their Mosque so that they could have jobs and not need to beg. I began design on a new line for high end hotels and event planners. Can't wait to see these designs and develop the rest of the line. We are working on the name of the new line but "incredible" is a great description for now. Here are some photos of the designs in detail and Renee our Bajalia buyer for that region. Renee and I were expecting to have a quick business meeting which wound up to be an all day affair, being invited to their home for lunch and reviewing and photographing all of the samples to begin designing from. I am loving Pakistan already, and we just started this project.

> Asian Tour 2008

>I am currently traveling on the continent of Asia visiting four countries- first India, then Pakistan, Thailand and China. The purpose of this trip is to visit the Bajalia production centers and check on progress of our orders as well as to develop new designs for orders for Holiday and spring 2009. Yes I said 2009- we have to work that far ahead now to serve our new wholesale clients and prepare for an upcoming trade show. This is a long trip and as I travel, I am still trying to manage issues in Orlando while being on the road, although I am very blessed to have a great team now to handle many areas I used to have to handle alone, there are still many areas that need my daily attention on both sides of the ocean.