Notes From The City: An Abundant Life - The Joy Of The Lord Is Our Strength

Pim Shih is an artist. He's a comedian, a clothing designer, a filmmaker, a photographer, a designer, an event planner and the list goes on. There are so many wonderful things that he does, and does well, but the thing that really makes him special in my way of thinking is that he uses all of his gifts and skills and talents to bring awareness to very serious social issues and to do something about them. One of my favorite sayings is "You can get more flies with honey than with vinegar," and perhaps that is why I like Pim so much. He's an activist, and the social issues he targets with his activism are so enormous that many times people might turn away from them because they don't know what else to do. But Pim Shih brings awareness to people through giving them an excellent show - he wanders the streets of Manhattan wearing a red spiky mask, telling jokes and interviewing people he meets on his way, and he fills the sanctuary of Holy Apostles Church once a month for Fashion Night Out events with wonderful and beautiful designers and artists and a creative energy that seems to have no bounds except to insure that everything that happens within the space is excellent and perfectly timed and choreographed.

I met Pim Shih through Instagram after I saw that someone under the name of TheSetNYC had left a comment about an event in Manhattan on the page of a designer who had liked one of my posts and had started following me. When I looked up TheSetNYC and started reading about Pim, all I kept thinking was, whatever it is this guy is doing, I like it, and so I contacted him through the press link on the website to see if there was a way we could meet and said I'd like to come to the show to take photographs. When he answered back he suggested a phone call first, and when he called me we talked for some time because there were so many things we had in common to talk about. We continued our conversation in person at Brookfield Place on a sunny afternoon before he was appearing on Patrick Sainvil's live radio show "Chirp About It" at City World Radio, and it was again so enjoyable to talk that the daylight turned to dusk while we were there and what we had thought would be a large space of time before the broadcast was over in a seeming flash. As I've mentioned in other posts, I've worked with designers and artists and entrepreneurs and small business owners and not-for-profits for years, helping with public relations and marketing, putting together events and connecting people to help strengthen their business and to create opportunities for collaborations. When I read about what Pim was doing through TheSetNYC, it sounded very much like my own business model, with the added impact of working toward eradicating social justice issues, and when we spoke about our work there were so many places where we were in agreement it felt as if we'd known each other for years.

The issue he is working on now is child trafficking, and in addition to raising awareness, he is focusing on a specific loophole in the sentencing laws that can prevent traffickers who have been caught from being imprisoned. Currently, one section of the law requires that children testify about the experiences they faced and claim under oath in court that they were unwilling participants. Because of the vulnerability inherent in being a child, and that is intensified in one that has been trafficked, children may be frightened and traumatized to such a great extent that they do not want to or may be unable to testify or to give clear testimony. The law that Pim is working toward getting passed would take away that loophole so that traffickers who have been caught could be sentenced more easily instead of being able to walk away and continue with the crimes they have been committing. This topic is all so very serious and very grim, and though I have been working over the years with different organizations and people who are working in these areas and I am able to discuss these things, I know that even I find the topic so overwhelming that it is difficult to know what to do. Because Pim is utilizing comedy and fashion and art and design in his efforts, he brings a topic to the forefront that needs to be addressed while giving people a more comfortable way to discuss it and a practical way to address it. That is a true gift and a skill, and one that adds another layer to the many talents that Pim Shih has.

When I went to the event at Holy Apostles Church, every person who had brought their work there was not only a super person, their work was wonderful too. I had been planning on staying for only part of the evening because I'd had a long week and had to wake up early the next morning for another long day, but I was enjoying myself so much that I decided to stay longer, and then when the fashion show started it was so exquisitely choreographed in every aspect of it that I stayed straight through to the end and for some time after to talk to some of the artists and audience members who had been a part of the evening. The selection of clothing designers, models and makeup was perfect and so varied that every entrance was exciting. Along with creatively designed lights and sound and music and video, it was one of the best fashion shows I've seen. I've been doing this kind of thing for so long and have known so many wonderful people over the years that it is rare that I am as impressed as I was that evening. Although I liked Pim when I met him at our first meeting at Brookfield Place and I appreciated what he was doing and how he was going about it, it was an added blessing to attend an event that was so excellent that I didn't want to leave and one that kept me later than I had thought I would stay because it was so great to be there.

Another thing that I like about Pim is that he's a man of strong faith without hitting anyone over the head with it. He incorporates scripture into his comedy and performance art, handing out Bible verses he's printed out to passers by and using them in videos, but it's done with the guileless whimsy of a child. He's truly excited by the passages he reads and chooses, and as he shares them his excitement helps them come alive. On the night I attended the Fashion Night Out event at Holy Apostles, at one point he asked me if I had had any prayer requests. I had one that was very important to me, and he prayed immediately for it, not using long sentences or big words or any over the top evangelistic stance. He prayed simply with faith believing, a sentence or two at most, and as he prayed I heard an answer in my spirit that this is really all we needed to do. I love to pray and have been praying since early on in my born again life. It was something that just came naturally to me and I do it often with anyone who asks or who needs it. But I've rarely had someone out of the blue ask me if I had any prayer requests - usually that is something that most people aside from me do only in church - and I've never to my recollection ever heard anyone pray so simply and easily while still being so full of faith. It's that matter of fact down to earth simplicity that keeps Pim Shih on a very high level - he's a man of extraordinary humility who is not afraid to speak up for what is right for those who cannot speak for themselves, and though everything he does is extraordinarily well done, he does it all with a spirit of joy and lightheartedness.

Pim Shih At Brookfield Place
On Instagram @TheSetNYC and @Pim Comedy
https://www.thesetnyc.com/