Last night I witnessed the most amazing thing: a gathering of love so strong it sent chills up my spine.
Some months ago, Glaucia Martin-Porath found a building for the Women’s Plaza. Her vision is to create a place where women can work right alongside their children and go see them any time of the day: read them a story, have lunch together, comfort them when they need it. A space where women can get support and advice from the women working next to them. It looked like she had found the right building: it was in a good location, with plenty of space for offices and a childcare center.
The owners wanted assurance that Glaucia would have enough tenants to occupy the building, so they required 50 letters of intent. She had less than a week to collect them. So she immediately emailed the community of women who have been gathering around this idea. And the community responded wholeheartedly. With 50 letters of intent in hand, Glaucia moved forward with the process of securing the building and designing the space.
But not everything went smoothly. Glaucia kept getting indications that the building owners were not being entirely upfront with her. In the end, she decided to walk away from the deal and look for a landlord she could trust. Such a heavy disappointment takes its toll on a person. It’s hard to keep going and have faith that the right space will show up. Glaucia, bless her heart, decided to hold true to her vision, despite all the setbacks.
Shortly after hearing this whole story from her over coffee, I received an email from someone I’d never met inviting me to a surprise party for Glaucia to support her and lend our energy to her vision.
My daughter and I showed up last night to a houseful of strangers who welcomed us as friends. When Glaucia arrived, the look on her face was priceless. Her community had, spontaneously and on their own initiative, gathered together to support her. The love she shares with everyone she meets was being reflected back to her in all the hearts in that room and in the hearts of all who couldn’t make it. Her husband and two young sons were there, the designers of the space were there, working moms, empty-nesters, women who don’t have children… All of us who believe in her and in her vision.
It was an extraordinary gathering. The love that poured forth from these women, and through them from those who couldn’t be there, was like a healing balm— strengthening, rejuvenating, inspiring. Each person told the story of how she met Glaucia, how she heard about this vision and what it means to her. Every single person in the room voiced the utmost confidence that this dream will become a reality. We even took a few moments to picture it, visualize it, intend it and offer that as a gift to Glaucia too. With a force like this behind her, there’s no doubt in my mind that Glaucia, and her community of women (and men!) will find the right space in which to thrive.
What better prosperity is there than that?