photo cred: @nabhattacharya

Anyone who knows me can vouch for the fact that I am not a political person. I have a healthy cynicism for all things Washington DC (except for this delicious miso glazed cod I had once in a restaurant near Chinatown—but I digress….). I usually identify myself as a person of the world, not just as an American. Perhaps this is because I did grow up as a child of immigrants (man, that word is so charged these days. Before it just meant my house smelled a little like masala and I didn’t put up a Christmas tree—anyhoo, let me focus).

This Saturday, however, I was able to participate in an experience that was incredibly inspiring and way out of my comfort zone. Me, and 250,000 of my closest friends, gathered in Grant Park to rally for the Women’s March. It was amazing. The crowd was so diverse, so peaceful, and so passionate about equality. The masses were reminding the higher ups that as a people, we can unite, we can organize, and we will demand equality for all. Being a woman comes with its own challenges and rewards. Health care? Insurance? Birth control??? This should not be a challenge!

It was a great reminder as well, for me. I rarely subscribe to the power an individual has regarding change. My parents moved here because this country offered them opportunity to be great, as well as freedom that cannot be found in other parts of the world. Let us not forget the extreme privilege it is, that we are able to rally, and march, and protest without fear of arrest or persecution. How powerful to remember that even a single individual can be a nidus for change. I propose we hold tight to this message as we go through the daily grind that is life. We can change a person’s day, or life, or even change the world, peacefully, gracefully and with a woman’s strength.