On the WiseBodies front porch last Wednesday afternoon, 6 girls, 9 - 12 years old, were designing, cutting, and learning how to sew cloth menstrual pads. During break times, they wrote about The Pad Project they'd started 3 months ago. On the phone with us via WhatsApp was our co-teacher Sima Kamaamia, coming to us from her home in Nairobi. On the screen of our computer was new WiseBodies Co-Director sara abdullah, who lives in Brooklyn, and who was introducing herself to each girl.
By the end of class, 4 parents, one 2 year old on the WiseBodies swing, and one 9 year old holding on to her father’s hand, were laughing and talking in the WiseBodies garden and driveway. Everyone was wearing a mask, and family cluster was maintaining a safe 6 feet distance.
As the students finished class and began heading out to meet up with their parents, and Sima was giving sewing advice to a parent via our virtual connection, I called out in cheerful manner, letting parents and the neighborhood know that the girls were bringing home their just-sewn pads, and would welcome all parents, including parents with testicles, to try them on.
These easy and welcoming learning days at WiseBodies are normal here. It is for this that kids and families return for, year after year.
The impact of the work we do at WiseBodies is subtle, and is vast. Take a moment to imagine into just this one moment of our afternoon together: Imagine being an adult cis male parent, and being invited by your daughter's WiseBodies teacher - invited with a voice the entire neighborhood could hear - to try on a cloth menstrual pad, and to come back the following week with feedback on how comfortable it is.
Imagine also being a kid, and having the chance to live within the reality that cycling is a perfectly normal topic, one that easily can be called out by your teacher from the front porch of a regular neighborhood home.
Imagine also being 9, and seeing your 12 year old big sister happily jumping down the porch steps, after her second class time here at WiseBodies, hearing that big sister say aloud how much she’s looking forward to coming back next week.
Imagine also being the parent of a 9 year old student who’s been at WiseBodies for a full year, and witnessing your young daughter become a class leader.
WiseBodies is a small school. We work locally. Our impact expands from our home in a small village, through the neighboring villages and towns, through our local small city, and all the way to Nairobi, Kenya.
The world - our world, small and large - needs us.
Come join us as we move forward. We’d love to have your 9 - 12 year old trans, cis, non-gender conforming daughter with us this year. Classes begin first week in October.
We’d love to have your financial support.
We’d love to have you tell your family and friends about WiseBodies.