In this world women have and continue to face many challenges but as we have seen in the unfolding stories there is an incredible amount of creative leadership, talent, resourcefulness and discipline. We need to remember that we have it in us and have had it for time immemorial to be the creative spark. In doing so, we have had the experience of noting what needs changing and sustained the reflective rigour to meet the challenges that have come our way. We have sustained our energies from one generation to another and nurtured each other in the face of adversity. Such wisdom serves to engrain knowledge and open up new paths, although we can never completely know for certain where they will lead to.

Each story in Our Stories, Our Lives offers a mixture of both subtle and bold insights into the unique wisdom of each contributor. They show us how the seeds which were once sewn have been nurtured and grown in strength, both in the private realms of the home and in the echelons of public society. They illustrate the hopefulness and dynamism of the young and the patience, vision and experience of the old. In them we also learn from and remember the struggle of the first generation of Muslim women in Britain and many more around the world that have helped to pave a way forward in vibrant and unique ways.

The stories equally bring out into the open some of the issues that women raise. Here, there is a universal appeal in their frank and open commentary on love, marriage, motherhood; mortality, migration, racism; violence and terror as well as faith and freedom. At times humorous and always refreshing, the contributors speak passionately about concepts of global peace and justice, citizenship and belonging, education, business, entertainment and creativity; the importance of nurturing a culture of critical openness and self-discovery and more importantly the crucial role of women as architects of change.

These women encourage us to reclaim the cherished values which some may say have been eroded within a society that promotes individualism and materialism.