Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4RysJspGE4 Starts at: 00:54:34 (jump to 00:54:34)
Laura Pimpo — Spoken Word on Hope and Ukraine
[00:54:34] so that’s something i am very proud of. Thank you. [00:54:35] And give it up for Brian one more time y’all [00:54:47] Yes, yes, yes [00:54:49] I don’t know if anyone’s seen any of our promo videos [00:54:53] But Brian is responsible for that video [00:54:56] Thank you again Brian [00:54:58] Thank you Brian [00:55:00] Alright, okay [00:55:06] Alright, so coming to the stage [00:55:08] We are inviting [00:55:09] Laura Pimpo [00:55:11] Alright [00:55:13] Hey, give it up for Laura y’all [00:55:14] Hi everyone [00:55:23] I’m here today [00:55:25] Partially because I’m very passionate about mental health [00:55:28] I myself struggle with anxiety [00:55:30] And depression [00:55:31] I think acknowledging that is part of just [00:55:33] You know, ending that stigma [00:55:35] But I’m also here on behalf of a dear friend of mine [00:55:42] Alyssa [00:55:42] She’s an artist and she came to this event last year [00:55:46] Brought her art and displayed it [00:55:47] But right now she is in Ukraine [00:55:49] Doing humanitarian work [00:55:51] Just recently [00:55:53] Thank you [00:55:54] She had the opportunity to do [00:56:00] Kids Camp with her community there [00:56:04] And she really focused on like kind of [00:56:06] The mental strains of the war over there [00:56:09] And just seeing the little kids kind of like [00:56:10] Process everything through art [00:56:12] Through dance [00:56:13] Through just talking [00:56:15] And it was like [00:56:16] It was a very emotional [00:56:18] But also rewarding experience for her [00:56:22] So I’m here for her today [00:56:24] We have her art in the other room [00:56:26] She has some snapshots from Ukraine [00:56:29] She also has some memories from Ukraine and again in the building right now [00:56:29] She also has some prints on sale, and is taking donations, so I’m here to support her, bring awareness to that, and also just the mental strains that this country is experiencing, because it’s really, it’s devastating for their mental health, physical health, you know, everything, so, but I’m also here, I wanted to share a little thing I wrote, so. [00:56:59] How do you keep smiling when everything is falling apart? How do you pretend that everything is going to be okay, when maybe it won’t? Crumbling ruins, hearts and souls torn apart, minds darkening from the weight of it all. When does it end? When do we get to be happy again? When do we get to breathe a sigh of relief, and say, it’s finally going to get better? [00:57:25] Life is a painful and dark journey sometimes, but that doesn’t mean there’s hope. [00:57:29] Hope, not hope. I find that there’s always hope, even if you have to create it for yourself. So, I’ll just leave it with that.