Written today at 12:50pm (12:50am EST)
I thought is was time to take a break from refreshing my browser to reflect on something that I actually believe in.
For several months, November Project Hong Kong (formerly #justshowuphk) has been quietly building a community around a simple phrase: “Just show up.” We started with a rag-tag bunch of Sun Yat Sen Park wanderers, work colleagues, and peer pressured friends with a few things to prove: that there is a reason for Hongkongers to be awake before 7am, that hugs or high fives are an acceptable form of greeting, and that #freefitness is eating the world.
Just like the other pledges, we spammed our social feeds, solicited co-workers and schemed our way into local publications. More and more, we became pretty obsessed with the numbers in the pictures and the fans on facebook. Maybe we (I) became so concerned with growth that we weren’t aware as we could have been of the development of a group that has come to define its name. Finally, there was a transition and the people who just showed up became a tribe and that was right about the time we became #32.
Lisa, Rebecca, and I have been are happy and proud to see individuals, and a group as a whole, accept the norms of inclusion, positivity, and cohesion. We regularly enjoy representation from over a dozen countries with a wide array of “how I ended up in Hong Kong” stories. And the best part about it is that all we have to do to enjoy it is show up.
One last story: This last weekend, nearly 20 of us participated in Hong Kong’s first Spartan race. The good news is everybody PR’ed. The better news is that Lisa was 3rd overall for women, Elena was top 3 for her category, Janelle was first in her category, and many surprised themselves by getting up the rope… or finishing! The best came from some who said they never would have raced at all – if it wasn’t for the group.
That is the only news I am willing to talk about.
If you or anybody you know wants to come to Hong Kong.
