Esther Garvi

This post is completely and utterly non-horse related but it has been weighing heavily on my mind, heart, and soul and I guess I need to share. I found out last Thursday of the passing of a very passionate woman who loved Ridgebacks, horses, and Africa. She had spent two months visiting family in Sweden and was returning to her home in Zinder Africa when she was killed in a car accident. Esther Garvi, you are deeply missed by thousands around the world.

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Last week a shining star faded from this Earth. I was and still am in shock over the passing of Esther Garvi, and have shed many tears over her sudden passing. I never personally met her. I diligently followed her blog and then her Facebook page. I was fascinated with her life, beings that it is so different and exotic than my Midwest life.  She was two years and nine days younger than myself and yet she’d accomplished so much more than I will ever accomplish in my entire life. She’d made not only a name for herself but for her causes: Eden Foundation and Bettan Garvi School to name two that were very close to her heart.

Without knowing it, she taught me some very important life quality knowledge. Personally, the last five years have been a struggle with one of them being the darkest of my entire life. Yet, there was Esther pointing out the small life quality moments that we should all look for in our lives.  That small yet powerful ability has made me think of Esther time and time again and I smile when I think about it. Glorious sunrises, amazing sunsets, a nicker, a soft muzzle, an exuberant dog tail wagging, a gentle breeze blowing across my face. Even the changing of the land I live in makes me remember Esther’s comments about her love for her African land. I am still intrigued by the land she cared for, the landscape, the animals, and the people. In the Midwest, we are blessed with a multitude of colors. White snow in the winter, dark brown in the spring showcasing the rich earth, green with the multitude of plants that provide for people and animals, golden yellow of the wheat fields that sway when the wind blows, and the rich red, yellow, and orange of the leaves as fall approaches.  I now appreciate each season a little more because of Esther’s insights into the beauty of the land.

Esther also taught me to enjoy life quality moments and to take them whenever you can. My passion is focused on senior horses and horses with special needs. I am very strong in my passion; simply ask my family. Esther pointed out that we all need to enjoy some life quality moments, including taking time out to enjoy family life quality moments. I’ve remembered that and now that I have a son and another child to join us in less than a month, I make sure to take more family life quality moments. My passion is now two-fold, my children and horses.

With the tears also comes the worry for what Esther left behind. I have read many comments about Esther’s passions for the children of Zinder, her dogs, her horses, and her work to continue her mother and father’s dream for the Eden Foundation.  I know that I have no right to voice my concern for her animals of the “Ark” but she allowed us to be a part of her life and now there are thousands of “family members” wondering about her “Ark” and her life’s passion. Esther opened our eyes to the children of Zinder and I worry for them, both the school children and the children of the Zinder orphanage.  Unfortunately, I am unable to sponsor a child to continue their education. I am currently working to keep my head above water financially because I run a horse sanctuary and was faced with thousands of dollars of medical bills for myself and my family in 2013. All I can do for the children of Zinder is spread the word about Esther’s cause and promote the program that Esther began. It is not much but it is a way to keep Esther’s passion and dream alive.

Of all the comments I read, my sister, Stacy Walters, was the first to place a challenge to the world to continue with Esther’s passions. She challenged people to donate towards a child’s education, to ensure that more Zinder children had the opportunity to go to school and receive an education. Someone must continue pushing for Esther’s dream. We cannot let her life’s work fade away. Even though Esther is not on this planet, we cannot let her down. We cannot let her passion, her life’s mission, her world be forgotten as the days pass.

For my own personal reasons, I want someone to step in and take over Esther’s passion even though I cannot ask that. I cannot fathom life in Zinder, having only ever lived in the Midwest and had all my essentials taken care of without much fuss. But I can pray that someone will step into Esther’s role and continue with Esther’s dreams and share the day-to-day life with the rest of the world.

With Esther’s passing, I feel as though a part of me has been cut away. Without Esther’s pictures and posts, how will I know what is going on half way around the world? She brought to light a world I had never known and I desperately do not want to give up continuing to see all the amazing life moments of Zinder, the children of Zinder, and the animals of Zinder.  I know that it is selfish of me to ask someone else to step into Esther’s shoes and continue with not only her passions but to share those same passions with the rest of the world. I do not want to say goodbye to Africa, or to the children of Zinder, or to Esther.  I do not want to lose seeing pictures of Esther’s sweet Sheba, her beloved horses, her excursions into the bush, or the children learning and playing at the “Ark”. I know I am being selfish in asking someone else to step in to take over Esther’s role. I don’t believe that there will be another person to fill such a void. Her insights were of someone with years of wisdom, not of someone of such a young age.

My heart is saddened of her passing. I will continue to remember much of Esther’s wisdom and try to spread that wisdom for others to learn. May Esther’s passions spread like wildfires to others. Even if it’s a different cause, let those passions emerge and thrive. Let her wisdom fly into the air and be spread throughout the world.

Esther never “challenged” anyone to continue with a specific passion or a goal. She did what she did because she was drawn to it and knew what she was put on this Earth to do. But I am willing to challenge others. Follow your passion. Follow your heart. Believe in the unbelievable.  Know that you can do anything if you put enough blood, sweat, and tears into it. It takes but one person. Let that person be you.

I will remember you, Esther Garvi. God speed.

Eden Foundation (http://eden-foundation.org/)
Bettan Garvi School (https://www.facebook.com/bettangarvischool)
Esther Garvi (http://www.esthergarvi.org/)