What's currently bringing you aram?
It’s that time of the year where I try out new hobbies. I like to start every year with the ambition to learn something new… sometimes these habits stick, sometimes they fall by the wayside. I’ve tried sailing, knitting, sewing, woodturning, criteriums (like sprint cycling) this year I’m trying out horse riding. So what is giving me ease is the chance to get out into nature and spend some time with animals, getting out of my head and into a world where I am a novice again, a beginner who only has the joy of learning and improvement ahead!
I’m also enjoying discovering new parks in London… this city’s weather can be extremely dispiriting, but if I pretend I’m in an Enid Blyton novel and I’m traipsing about the moors on some giant adventure, the weight of the grey skies feels a little lighter.
Over the years, what have you learned about your voice — be it honing in on what you have to say as a broadcaster or the way in which you share your thoughts and knowledge with the world or even when you write for children?
I’ve learned that my voice is a tool that I can wield in a variety of manners, all depending on what the context calls for. When one understands the content, you can explain it just as well to a group of children as you can to a room of combative adults or your aunty at Eid lunch. That said, for me, understanding my voice has been about stripping back the expectations I have around what I should sound like and who I should be, and doing my absolute best to write or share what feels honest, and true. Much easier said than done, I’m afraid!
Spread the maya and shout out someone who you think deserves more light.
Oh my goodness so many! Let me share three of my current faves:
If you don’t know about my dear friend Dhakshayini Sooriyakumaran, you must ameliorate the situation immediately. They are a whip smart former engineer like myself turned scholar-activist and they do amazing work in the tech/human rights space and they’re a fantastic writer. Check out their medium here and a fab interview they’ve done on Australian welfare abuse here.
Ola Labib is a hilarious Sudanese British comedian who is killing the GAME right now and Sara Elhassan is an incredible Sudanese American activist who has been committed since day one to spreading the word on the resistance movements happening on the ground in Sudan as we speak.
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