3 things to respect...

1) People who can write in a fluid, lucid and thoroughly compelling way; so many writers aspire to achieve that yet so few can actually stand up when called. Zadie Smith for me is promising, her debut novel 'White Teeth' was excellent and in my opinion she succeeded in the aim mentioned above. If you haven't read it, pick it up - you won't put it down.

2) Those who stand defiant against the system and march to the beat of their own drum; great example of this is the French ice-skating dynamo, Surya Bonaly, who was 5 time European Champion and the only Black woman to achieve this. In the 1998 Olympics, she did an illegal back-flip which put her in hot water. One of the youtube.com commenters summed it up perfectly - 'it was the equivalent of a middle finger in ice-skating'. I say why not? Do your thing and you can check it out below:

3) The determination and sheer guts that some people have. It leaves me speechless. For example, certain rural women of Kenya who created their own village near Samburu tribal land to escape their menacing husbands. The village is called 'Umoja' which in Swahili means 'unity'.

3 isn't a big number but it's quality not quantity -- I just felt moved to give some credit where it's due.

~A