It’s been a week, how are you doing? The busyness of life in April has caught me by surprise. 

It is when we are most busy that we must take extra care of ourselves. One of the most common questions that I get from friends is how do I do it all? Between community work, a full job and a family, balancing life is hard.  And I am not perfect. Far from it :). There are definitely moments when I feel overwhelmed with responsibilities and expectations. 

I have learned to set boundaries for myself and recognize that I am only human. That there is not a lot that I can control but I could and will say no to things that are not important to me.

The biggest secret is taking care of yourself first. Finding fifteen minutes before everyone wakes up to read or have a cup of coffee. Finding time in the week to exercise so you could be in the best shape in mind and in body. Eating food that brings you joy and happiness. Performing a service to help others.

As you may know, community work is one of my biggest passions. We are in some ways so privileged to be in a place where we don’t have to worry about communism, about being poor and not having enough food at the table. Or face discrimination because of what we look like or who we are as Khmer-Krom. At least in my corner of the world.

It is because of these privileges that we have power. It is in the voice that each of us have, the education that we earned and skills we have crafted through experiences. It is taking the opportunities that we have today and making the most of it. 

Speaking of opportunities, my youth team and I spent most of our weekends preparing for the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues meeting starting April 19th. Because we understand what it’s like not to a voice and be recognized as indigenous, we wanted to make sure that our Khmer-Krom people from the Mekong Delta of Vietnam are represented. 

We also released a cool “tiktok like” video, bringing Khmer-Krom youth together virtually to connect with one another and raise awareness of sustainability development goal 16, a special theme for this year’s forum. I am so thankful for my team who came up with this idea and made it all happen in a fun and super creative way.

If you don’t already do community work, find a cause worth fighting for because I believe we are all here for a much bigger purpose. Whether it is fighting against cancer, racism or plastics, there is a cause out there worth fighting for. The world could only be united in peace and justice if each of us do our part to make things right.

And if you are like me and are a super busy bee, remember to take care of yourself. Only by taking care of yourself can you take care of others.