An open letter to some seriously incredible women…

Dear TEDxTinHauWomen,

We all showed up. For different things. Ahead of the event, we were asked to share what we will show up for. I filled in the blank, and the first thing that came to my mind was this: “I am #showingupnow for my younger self to show her it’s ok to have big dreams and to go after them.” Little did I know that I‘d end up showing up for even more than this.

I SHOWED UP FOR
THE MELTDOWN

Let’s start with the end. After months of work of the whole team and all the brilliant speakers involved, seeing this event draw to a close left me feeling…well…very, very emotional. With tears rolling down my face, I grabbed on to whoever came my way. There was Joyce, „my“ speaker, her coach Lisa, there was Jen, Mairi, Tatman, Daniella, Ana, all of them got a sobbing Regina hug but once I hold onto Nikki the floods really opened…a mix of exhaustion and happiness but also nostalgia overcame me as I remembered that moment so clearly from last years event.

Back then with my already rather big baby bump and with people by my side that have since relocated to other cities, like Célia. It so happened that this years event day was also Célia’s birthday, so I did feel her spirit so much – just like those of many others, like Lulla and Frankie, Amanda, Karen, Jo and of course „my“ speaker of last years event – Cristina. That final moment of the TEDxTinHauWomen event made me miss them all so much more.

TEDxTinHauWomen – our lucky #impact Club member won a free ticket

Thank gosh I had calmed down by the time that our #impact club member winner of the Tedx ticket, the gorgeous Hai Anh, found me. Also, Stef who I shared so many unforgettable moments with leading up to D-day luckily got to hug a more together Regina, so I could at least get a few post-event memory pictures without dripping tears on the TEDx letters.

Stefanie Myers made TEDx Curation magic happen

I can’t even blame the post-partum hormones for my meltdown but feeling emotional after that crazy TEDx ride is just a given. After all the hours spent, the work put in, the v-pact recording and editing, the joy, the spirit and community, and also the sleepless nights, the re-doing of ppt slides over and over again (thank you for all the patience, April!) ,the practice, the rehearsals, the follow-ups and the meetings, the big day went by just like that. So quick.

It felt as if we had just arrived minutes earlier – and what an arrival it was.

As glamorous as the event was up there on Sky 100, the arrival for the team was not. Early morning, we squeezed in with the speakers in the packed cargo lift. In between trash bins we took some selfies that we rather not publish here and made it up to the top of the spectacular ICC skyscraper. That moment when our 50+strong committee lined up to get into that cargo lift in the first place will stay with me forever, just like how Victoria came for the rescue negotiating to get us up there on time for set up.

I SHOWED UP FOR
THE NERVES

Yep, we all felt them, especially backstage: Speakers pacing, practising, rehearsing, breathing, singing, focusing, praying. It was not only the speakers that were nervous, of course, our committee felt it too. Everyone felt the tension – everyone surely for different reasons but all just as valid – and while the crowds started moving in and around those so thoughtfully curated experience zones where participants started sipping on coffees and cocktails, the speakers got their make up retouched and looked for quiet corners to get into the zone too.

Final Touches at TEDxTinHauWomen

I SHOWED UP FOR
THE MAGIC

Of course, all went well. All the speakers shined, they conquered stage fright, worries and tech hiccups. Most of all they inspired a 600+ strong crowd. For all of you that were there, I don‘t need to mention how incredible and thought-provoking all the talks were. Small, Jessie, Rossa, Awen, Zoe, Carmen, Verlebie, Joyce – our speakers were INCREDIBLE! From mental health to beating cancer from intersex to a sex diary, from child changemakers to the transformative power of music from conquering clinical depression to technology as a force for equality – all these topics and ideas are so very worth spreading. And I hear the videos are coming soon.

Magic happened when I saw Esther hold her daughter tight while her V-pact feature was playing. It just warmed my heart so so much. What an incredible role model she is for her little girl and knowing that Esther had to put herself out of her comfort zone to show up like that, I could not be more proud.

Magic also happened when I got teamed up with Joyce (Thank you, Stef!!). As Joyce’s speaker buddy I was part of her coaching journey. I did my best to be there for her from that very first meeting and I’ll never forget how fondly she shared stories about her children with me that day. It was then that Treena, Lisa and I got to hear about the Project Two Front Teeth for the very first time.

The very same story that moved so many at TEDxTinHauWomen this year. Joyce’s kids are amazing and I feel so grateful that I could be part of their mums TEDx journey. It was my great honour to bring these very very important guests, her two younger kids, to their front row seat to see their mum going on as the final speaker of the day. I also met Joyce’s mum, her husband Henri and her colleague Phoebe and what struck me from the second I saw them together is how they look out for each other. There were there to hold Joyce’s hand, but also gave her the space she needed to get ready to face her stage fright.

With Wonder Woman Dr Joyce Samoutou-Wong

Despite her fear, Joyce blew everyone away and it was really unnecessary for me to sit there with my eyes glued to Joyce’s script:

Because she knew it, she owned it, she shined and it did not even let it throw her off…

that her microphone, entangled in the superwoman belt she was rocking, fell off just seconds before she had to go up on stage. Two technicians were hanging on her pulling cables when our brilliant moderator Tiffany (and how amazing was she!!!) was already calling Joyce on stage. That microphone hiccup – it might have just been the most perfect last-minute distraction for Joyce coping with her stage fright.

And up she went on that stage and the rest is history.

After the tears followed lots of laughter, catching up and cheering with the speakers and committee members, there were Allie and Fiona, Esther and Paul, Belinda and Sarah from Localmotion (watch out for them in #impact Season 4!!). WHAT A DAY!

POST-EVENT WITHDRAWAL 

Just like last year, the post-event weekend reminded me of a bit of my post-wedding weekend…. this mix of exhaustion and happiness, but also sadness about it being over, the nostalgia and memories racing through my mind.

As always, my kids were a great distraction, so was the sunshine and the live music playing in the restaurant where we had lunch yesterday. Naturally, my 3YO dragged me to the dance floor. We start moving closer to the band when I hear a familiar Beatles tune…..“There are places I remember…..”

It made me think of Awen’s talk how she shared that at certain moments in your life the right music just finds you.
It was the right song. At the right time.

TEDxTinhauWomen is a place that I will remember….
All my life, though some have changed
Some forever, not for better
Some have gone and some remain
All these places have their moments
With lovers and friends, I still can recall
Some are dead and some are living
In my life, I’ve loved them all

Lots of love to all you TEDxTinHauWomen! I just loved how April asked in our Curation Team chat today if we were meeting tonight. 🙂 I think it’s not just me suffering from acute TEDx organising withdrawal.

Yours,

Regina
PS: I recorded a gorgeous interview with Joyce that you can all enjoy here. Get on the #impact Newsletter to make sure to stay in the loop when we launch the next Season of #impact – our most ambitious one yet. 

About the Author: Regina Larko is volunteering with the Organising Committee of TEDxTinHauWomen since 2017. She founded #impact Podcast to bring inspirational stories to its listeners, encourage them to make their own positive impact and offer a platform to changemakers to share their incredible work making the world #abetterplace.