It’s been 3 years and 3 pageant titles, 8 countries and countless awareness events, petitions signed, TV interviews, photo shoots and speaking engagements. I never imagined that this chapter would be part of the story of my life but now, I am so thankful that God’s plans are greater than mine!

In one month, I will crown my successor and end my journey as a titleholder in pageants forever. I want to take the time to THANK YOU ALL for the part that you have played in this journey! Your support, love, prayers and encouragement have meant the world to me! Truly, I have seen a community motivated with the possibility of something greater and stand for justice across the nations. You inspire me!

While the closing of this chapter is bittersweet, I can’t wait to begin a new one and I’m looking forward to the future with GREAT ANTICIPATION!

I can’t wait to share the exciting news that’s on the horizon and I look forward to the many years that we will journey together, seeing the world move a bit together to “on earth as it is in heaven”.

With Conviction,

Tara Teng
Miss World Canada 2012

Back in October 2012, two of my dearest guys in my life travelled to Uganda to document the first graduating class of the Timothy Girls School. It was there that they met Monica- a strong, intelligent and soft spoken girl with tenacious ambition.

I think back to when I was graduating high school…I did not have to face the same social challenges that Monica does. Yet she is bravely pioneering into the future as a young educated woman, determined to raise the social status of all women in her country.

From Malala inPakistan to Monica in Uganda, girls are rising up from rural classrooms and taking their place on the world stage…history is being made all around us.

To learn more about the Timothy Project’s Girls School, Leadership Training, Sustainable Farming or to Sponsor a student like Monica, visit: http://paoutreach.net/timothy-project

As the prayer drums beat in public squares across Canada and around the world, the prayers of my heart beat for what I believe Idle No More was truly meant for… peace, reconciliation, justice and healing. For generations, Canada’s history of colonization and silent genocide has been the tarnish on our country’s humanitarian reputation. While there have been attempts for healing and strides towards justice made in the last number of years, the fact remains that generations of damage and pain will not be wiped away in a single instant.

With friends on both “sides” of the Idle No More Movement, I have spent the last month listening, watching, reading, studying, praying and mediating on what my response as a Canadian… and as a justice-seeking, Jesus-following, Bible-believing person needs to be.

While I may not have come to a “political” stance on the issue, this is what I know:

• I want Shalom to be present among Canada’s many different multicultural people who call this land “home”. 
• I know that God so loved the world and that the birth of Jesus Christ is “Good News of great joy which will be for ALL PEOPLE” (Luke 2:10).
• I believe that Jesus came bring heaven to earth…to proclaim freedom for those in slavery, to bring sight to the blind and to end all forms of oppression.
• I believe that Canada has a great destiny to fulfill. Our multi-cultural identity will be a knitted story of peace to the nations and that justice can be our legacy to the world.

These are all nice, Biblical ideals but they mean nothing if they aren’t lived out with consistency in my daily life. And here is where things get personal…If I seek to live my life justly and I recall the parable of the Good Samaritan then I must ask myself…as I call Canada my home, who is my neighbour?

You see, I spend my life fighting for justice to be experienced by marginalized, oppressed and devalued people all over the world. This fight has brought me to developing nations that are more than 12 time zones away… but it all means nothing if I can’t also work to see justice for the marginalized people that live down the street from me.

I want to genuinely love my First Nations neighbours. I want to stand against racial injustice and bring healing to this land. As a justice-seeking, Jesus-following, Bible-believing person, I seek to live the legacy of brokenness being made whole, of new life bring brought to dark places and of sadness turning into overflowing joy.

I do not want to “help” the “poor natives”. I do not want to come in and “fix” things with my half european/half asian ideals of what “works”. I need to stand with my First Nations and Aboriginal neighbours because I need them just as much as they need me, because I have so much more to learn, because God has no skin colour, because change is possible and because we can not live the fullness of peace, justice and shalom in Canada without the healing that comes through a mutual, neighbourly bond of equality and respect amongst all peoples who call this land “home”.

Finally, I have realized through studying this movement and spending time with my Native friends that Love is not idle. When you truly love someone, it becomes personal. When they hurt, you hurt. When their lives are filled with joy, you share in their celebration. When they are facing injustice, you stand and intervene. Love does not idly stand by when it needs to rise to courage and defend what is right.

Love gets personal.

Love is not idle.

So here is my invitation to fellow justice-seeking, Jesus-following, Bible-believing people who agree on the points I have stated above:

• Meet your First Nations and Aboriginal neighbours. 
• Listen.
• Open your heart, mind and life to them in genuine and mutual friendship.
• Learn from the wisdom and beauty that their cultural  has to offer.
• Remember that Jesus is for ALL PEOPLE.
• Pray for healing
• And actively remember that Love is not idle. 

With Conviction,

Tara Teng

Dressed in my full regalia and standing next to my friend, Clarence Abrahams. January 3, 2013.

Photo by Mique’l Icesis Dangeli

**I want to explore what it means to be a “Marginalized” people group. Stay tuned for a follow up blog with a guest writer!

Every year God gives me a word or a theme that often defines the journey that He takes me on that year and many of the lessons that I learn that year.

2009-Consistency: To be found constant, reliable, consistent.

2010-More: This year- strive for more. Don’t settle. Don’t get comfortable. Fight more. Love more. Learn more. Mentor more. Obey more. Be more.

2011-With Conviction: To live with my whole heart for my whole life. 99.9% is not enough.

2012-Add to the Beauty: I want to live in the beauty of the Jesus- love story and see that beauty grow in the world around me.

Now, at the beginning of 2013 I’m sensing there are two words that keep coming up in my head: Love & Light. 

Will be posting more insights of Love and Light in the next little while.

Excited for the future!

Dances of the World 2012: 116 Nations under one roof.
(My solo starts at 4:53)

Another Highlight of 2012:

I never thought that I would participate in Miss World and even though I thought I was done with pageants forever, God clearly had different plans. I’ve learned many things along the journey (which I will share later) but one thing that my life has been blessed with is a new understanding of my brothers and sisters who are First Nations people.

I never once before have I thanked them for the time that I have spent growing up on their land. This was their home before it was ours….and I am so grateful to share in the beauty of this vast and magical land. Canada- and her original people, are truly precious.

Today the beauty of Canada’s multicultural nation is that our common shared value is to live together in peace and learn from what each people group has to offer. Yet as time passes on I want to acknowledge and honour Canada’s beginnings and the heritage that we can never forget.

My Native friends have taught me about strength, endurance and sharing wisdom through community. I know I have a lot yet to learn but I’m thankful that I have been welcomed in to continue to share in the journey.

As Miss World Canada- an Ambassador of our nation, I had the opportunity to represent Canada on the World Stage this summer. For the Dances of the World celebration, I wanted the world to also see the beauty of the First Nations cultures and to appreciate it in the way that I do. Although I am not native, I was entrusted with the knowledge of Pow Wow Fancy Shawl Dance by my dear friend, Shadae Johnson and brought into the community through Melaney Lyall. I can’t even begin to express how much it meant to share something so precious with the world.

I hope that we can all respect, appreciate and celebrate in each nation’s heritage and our combined future together. It is my prayer for the future that natives and non-natives will stand strong together- the beauty of Canada.

With Conviction,

Tara Teng
Miss World Canada 2012

And it couldn’t have come at a better time. As the world turns pink in recognition, 14 year old Malala Yousufzai currently lies unconscious in a hospital bed after being shot in the head and neck by the Taliban while she was trying to board a school bus to sit on the floor and receive an education in Pakistan. Clearly, knowledge is power and education shapes countries. As NY Times Journalist and Co-Author of the amazing book Half the Sky , Nicholas Kristof said in his recent article:

“[The Taliban] understand the stakes perfectly. They shot Malala because girls’ education threatens everything that they stand for. The greatest risk for violent extremists in Pakistan isn’t American drones. It’s educated girls.“

Can you imagine what the world would look like when girls were educated, empowered, listen to, valued, invested in and given their rightful places alongside their male peers? Oh the possibilities! The world has never seen that before!

As Martin Luther King Jr. bravely once said…“I have a dream”. 

Let us pray for the brave little hero, Malala Yousufzai. She has a long road ahead of her, even if she recovers from this assassination attempt. The Taliban have promised to kill her, if she continues to speak out about education and Malala, in turn, had recently announced that one day she would like to pursue a leadership role in politics.

I pray that she, and many other girls like her, get the opportunity to.

Let’s stand beside our sisters and make this happen. I believe in the possibilities!

 ($60=Education for a girl in need).

July 11, 2012

Teng headed to China to represent Canada at Miss World

Langley, B.C. – Local Resident and Miss World Canada 2012 Tara Teng leaves with anticipation on Saturday for Ordos, China for the 62nd Miss World competition. Teng will be in China from July 18 to August 18 competing for the global title to further her message of ending modern day slavery and hopes to bring the crown back to Canada for the first time in history.

The Miss World® Pageant is the oldest, and most watched pageant in the world with over two billion viewers. Miss World® has changed the lives of many children by raising over $500 million dollars globally. The Miss World® Pageant’s mandate is “Beauty with a purpose”. The pageant stresses the equal importance of inner and outer beauty. “I am honoured to represent Canada on the global stage at Miss World and truly hope my success is marked by my stand for the value and freedom of every human life,” says Teng. Teng expresses deep gratitude for all of her friends, family, leaders and others who have encouraged and supported her.

“Her determination and passion to continue making positive changes in the lives of people worldwide is inspiring!” said Miss World Canada chairman, Ike Lalji Lalji says that this is the first time in the history of the pageant that such a monumental contribution has been made by a titleholder. “We stand behind her and know that she is a great representative, not only for Canada but for the world!” concluded Lalji.

If you would like to support Teng in her effort, please visit http://www.facebook.com/MissWorldCanada , like the page and share. The likes on this page count towards Teng’s score and you can also follow her progress. “I am proud to represent my beautiful country of Canada to the world, either way- its time to make history!” concludes Teng.

Yet as the adventures of life roll on, sometimes I get so caught up in living that I don’t invest my time in writing. I suppose it’s a fair trade but writing the adventures found along the journey feels like water to my soul. It gives me an opportunity to step back and make sense of all that has been experienced.

So I take this time to apologize for my silence.

To those who know me or even those who know about me, you’re sure to find that conviction is one of the most important words of my vocabulary. I don’t say or do anything unless I can put my whole heart into it. So when I apologize for something, I genuinely mean it.

As a child I was always uncomfortable with being “forced” to apologize for something unkind that I had done. My dear parents were simply teaching me the importance of apologies, forgiveness and manners but for me, if it wasn’t said with conviction, then it didn’t feel honest…which is also bad manners, isn’t it?

So over the last few weeks, as I have been preparing for a pageant that mandates the empowerment of women, I’ve spent a fair amount of time resting my heart on the perceived role of women in society throughout the world.

What I have realized is that I have given up on apologizing for my body. While it is admirable to dress in a way that does not “make my brothers stumble”, I will not apologize for the body that God has placed my soul within. I will dress with both dignity and beauty, expressing the soul that my body carries. I will not try to dress, act or speak like a man when I have been born to live the fullness of who I am as a woman. I will let my hair down and embrace my femininity.

I will fearlessly and unapologetically expect society to respect me for the essence of who I am and not for what I look like.

As a woman I will not apologize for the talents, gifts or inspiration that God has given me. I believe that when God gives talents to people, He does not discriminate based on age, gender, socioeconomic status or any other factor that humanity judges on. He does not equip people with unique and specific talents then mistakenly place them into souls living in the wrong body. He knows what He’s doing.

All this to say that I am a woman. I am young. I am a leader… and I believe that God made me that way. 

Some people may not be ready for young, strong and empowered women in leadership but I refuse to wait until half my life is over before I begin to step into the person that I was born to be. I don’t know where this path will lead but I anticipate an incredible journey. Women have value and stories that must be heard, whether in church, politics, entertainment, academia or culture. We were meant to live as brothers and sisters- as humanity called to life by God.

No matter where life takes me, I am convinced that the value of human life is immeasurable and people were meant to live in freedom. I am convinced that God does not discriminate and sadly it is only people who do.

We were each born for purpose; I am stepping into mine…and I will not apologize for that. I encourage you to begin the journey and do the same because if when we are all living in the fullness of our purpose then we are once step closer to “on earth as it is in heaven”.

We seem to roll through each day as if we’ll live forever. We make plans as if we are promised the next five years. We are surprised when the week ends, autumn returns or the time comes to celebrate our birthday again. Some people live without ambition or hold back their passions until they reach the age when “they will be taken seriously” only to find that they have waited half their life away.

It could all be over in a second; a moment and everything we’ve ever known is gone.

I don’t say this to be fatalistic but realistic. Every breath is a treasure and I firmly believe that as long as your heart is beating and there is air in your lungs that there is still purpose that God has for you to be involved with here on earth.

So live like fear doesn’t define you.

Create.

Play.

Inspire.

Breathe.

LOVE.

Challenge.

Give.

Dream.

Risk.

Enjoy.

and LIVE.

I choose to live on purpose.