How my madness took hold

The crunchy golden leaves were falling on a reflective autumn day, October 8 last year. I was sitting in the stylish Mermaid Theatre near St Paul’s, in the buzzing audience of an inspirational event organised by my spectacularly successful son Daniel, who at the tender age of 21 started his own company, Triumphant Events in Australia. And now, less than 10 years later he was gracing the stage in London, a charismatic speaker, leading The Entrepreneur Revolution, motivating Brits to reject the doom and gloom of the recession and fight back by starting their own businesses and living their dreams.

But I was dejected, frustrated and lost. My promising new job had suddenly fallen in a heap and I was forced to start all over again. In that rarefied anything-is-possible atmosphere, I asked myself what I really wanted to do with the rest of my life.

In my mid-50s, I wanted to use my lifetime of experience, knowledge and talents to make a meaningful contribution to the world, not slide aimlessly into early retirement. I wanted to work in poor countries and help alleviate the immensity of human suffering.

But how could I make this heartfelt desire a reality? That catalytic day launched me into a frenzy of brainstorming and research. I hatched the idea to start MAD for humanity, using the catchy acronym for Making A Difference.

If I wanted to make a positive difference then plenty of other women of my generation of feisty Empty Nester-Baby Boomers did too. So I decided to organise trips for adventurous mature women to volunteer with projects in Africa and also experience the magnificent countryside and wildlife. I had stumbled into the brave new frontier of ‘voluntourism’.

Over three months, I approached directors of leading charities to enquire if they needed teams of mature-aged women volunteers. I wanted to partner with worthy organisations and add value, not so much in monetary donations, but value measured in human skills, expertise and heart.

I realised I would need to build an impressive website, generate publicity and climb a steep learning curve, mastering countless travel, health and legal details of working in foreign countries. It dawned on me that this massive project would take ages to set up. Such MADness could consume me for the next 10 years! But still I was undaunted.

But Thank Goodness for a BFO! (Blinding Flash of the Obvious) Perhaps I should google search ‘MAD”! That’s when I struck gold! Eureka! On January 7, 2012 I discovered Madventurer, a vibrant website about an amazing voluntourism organisation for energetic young students on their gap year. Now this was an intersection of dreams!

Madventurer is well-established, having grown and thrived since 1998, the brainchild of a remarkable, visionary engineering graduate John Lawler, inspired by his own life-changing gap year in a village in Ghana.

Another BFO! Why re-invent the wheel! Why not partner with Madventurer, adding a new dimension, a niche market of MAD women?

Over 14 years teams of young Madventurer volunteers had helped build and renovate schools, pre-schools, orphanages, clinics and water and sanitation systems.

While mature-aged women might not be keen on heavy construction work, they could offer their knowledge and skills in fields such as medical, counselling, education, micro business, crafts and farming and food, mentoring women and nurturing children.

Volunteering is a two-way street; improving quality of life for people unfairly disadvantaged by poverty while enriching well-off volunteers (whose materialistic lives can ironically feel empty) with a sense of purpose and paradigm shift of values.

Volunteering heals the denial and disconnection between affluent and poor countries so that cultures can join hands and people of all colours can form heart to heart bonds of friendship with mutual respect and equality.

By pitching in, volunteers help correct the unjust imbalance between those who live in excessive consumption and those who live in abject deprivation. Yes, ordinary people, despite destructive global politics, can change the world.

So yesterday, I threw on my coat and scarf and travelled up north by train to Newcastle-upon-Tyne to meet with John and discuss how we can collaborate! To my absolute delight he embraced the idea of expanding Madventurer to cater for mature-aged women (and once wives lead the charge, husbands often follow!)

My MAD Women’s Club is off and racing on the fast track. I am heading off on an exploratory trip to Africa in June to volunteer with Madventurer’s projects and trial an exhilarating itinerary tailored especially for adventurous women ready to break out of their comfortable lives, hit the dusty road and go MAD for humanity! Join me on my journey of discovery.

MAD MANIFESTO

Not so much insane, but mad in the sense of a little bit eccentric and angry mad about the suffering, injustice and inequality in the world. That’s why we are “mad women” and why the acronym Making A Difference is the perfect call to action.

Mature women have much to contribute to the world. With kids grown up, we yearn for a new lease on life.We look beyond our homes and families to unknown frontiers, with a renewed sense of adventure.Having raised children, overcome challenges and survived heartbreak, we are wounded love warriors, equipped with natural nurturing abilities and empathy and compassion.

We have an abundance of career and life experience, talents and skills, intelligence and wisdom to offer the world. We have a sense of urgency and desire not to waste our gifts; a burning desire to connect and give.

But ironically just when we have the most to offer with undivided time and focus, devotion and passion, we are often considered unemployable and consigned to the scrapheap of invisible retirement.

If we once had exhaustive roles as wives, mothers and workers we can now, past 50, find ourselves unwanted, useless and redundant.

So this is why we must employ ourselves; find our own causes to champion in a world of hardship and suffering crying out for help. We must hire ourselves to take on this real work that gives meaning and purpose and deep fulfilment.

We must not depend on the establishment to recognise our value. We must recognise our value for ourselves and seize the challenge.

We are now old enough and wise enough to be our own parent and employer; to rely on our own inner guidance, trust our own discerning judgement, make our own decisions.

When we discover and affirm our worth and live our core values, we will realise we are capable of generating income, solving problems and adding value to the world.

Empowered mature women can inform, influence and inspire through their words, feelings and actions and enrich, heal and transform lives.

BUT we must not attempt it alone because disconnection and isolation is a recipe for failure. We must join forces with other dynamic women and work together as a united, trusted sisterhood.

We must overcome rivalry, competitiveness and jealousy to work together in solidarity and mutual support, co-operation and collaboration because heartfelt co-operation is the essence and strength of women.

Together we can Make A Difference for Humanity.