4 minutes reading time (755 words)

A Dream, Which we Dream Together, is Reality

A Dream, Which we Dream Together, is Reality

There is a popular Brazilian song, Preludio by Raul Seixas, that includes the lyric "A dream, which we dream alone, is just a dream. A dream, which we dream together, is reality”. I’ve listened to songs in Brazil this year. I’ve listened to songs in Germany, Poland, and other places too as I traveled from here to there speaking and learning about Joomla. In all of those places, just like all the places I’ve been before, I had great experiences meeting and talking with different people, learning about cultures, sharing knowledge, offering help and contributing to a common dream.

We believe in an open source CMS that helps to empower people, giving them autonomy to create great things and share them. It isn’t only about business. It’s a philosophy, a lifestyle and belief system that can change lives and make us better human beings.

I love to talk about Joomla, the community and the sense of belonging that I’ve experienced and how dreams get bigger when we join forces and work together. I’ve seen great things happen before because of the community. I’ve felt an overwhelming sense of belonging before, but last week I had an incredible experience that brought tears to my eyes.

Saurabh Shah Keynote at JoomlaDay Poland 2014Saurabh Shah Keynote at JoomlaDay Poland 2014 Credit: Tomasz Karolski

 

Last week I attended JoomlaDay Poland in Warsaw, and I left my laptop on a bus. (Please don’t ask me how I could have done such a thing. I can’t explain it). I worked hard to locate the computer by contacting the bus company and talking with drivers. I went to the local Police station, but it was gone.

I was upset because I work from home and all of my resources were on that computer. If you’re a web-based professional like me, can you image it? I live in Pune, India, and by most accounts, I was alone. A foreigner in a foreign land. But I didn’t feel alone. I was with my Joomla family and they supported me the entire time. They made sure I didn’t feel alone. Danuta Idzil, a Joomla enthusiast in the Polish community, and one of the organizers of JoomlaDay Poland, helped me run around looking for my computer and David Hurley offered his help whenever he could by letting me borrow his machine and helping with converting my presentation from pdf file. I was in my hour of need and these people helped me.

Saurabh Shah, David Hurley , Danuta Idzik and Stefan Wajda at JoomlaDay Poland 2014Saurabh Shah, David Hurley, Danuta Idzik and Stefan Wajda at JoomlaDay Poland 2014Credit: Tomasz Karolski

 

In fact, the entire Polish Joomla community helped me. After the event, they did something that I never expected. They started a fund to help me purchase a new laptop. Unbeknownst to me, Danuta Idzik, Przemek Wróbel, Michał Trzepizur, Stefan Wajda and other community members came up with an idea to create an Indigogo fundraising campaign to help me buy a new laptop.  

They presented the idea to Radek Suski, an OSM board member who was also attending the event, and together with the Polish PCJ Open Source Foundation they took action. The response was unbelieveable. Within 10 hours of announcing the campaign, they reached 100% of the goal. They blasted it out on social media, and the community that I love so much responded. It was incredible. I couldn’t believe it.

Laptop for saurabh Indiegogo funraising Campaign Laptop For Saurabh Indiegogo Campaign (Taken 30th September 2014): https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/laptop-for-saurabh

 

I woke in the middle of the night because my phone kept ringing. Because I’m so active on Twitter and Facebook, I love to get all feeds on my Phone. I saw the news and couldn’t go back to bed. I saw humanity. I saw strong relationships. I saw community. I was incredibly humbled and felt an immense sense of pride to be part of the Joomla community. I call them my #JFamily.

To all of those who helped me along with Funders on Campaign: your generosity has inspired me on so many levels. You have no idea what you’ve done for me. What you’ve done is one of the kindest things I’ve ever experienced and I’ll never forget it. You’ll always remain in my heart and I love you dearly. You have empowered me to continue to create great things and share them.

New MacBook Pro Laptop for Saurabh as outcome of Fundraising CampaignSaurabh Shah's new Macbook Pro as an outcome of Fundraising Campaign

 

 A dream, which we dream alone, is just a dream. A dream, which we dream together, is reality. Your love and support is my reality. Let’s keep dreaming "All Together".

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