I recently celebrated a birthday. My two girls have been away at summer camp and they came to meet me at some nice hot springs nearby. They came bearing homemade gifts not unlike the ones they had made starting in preschool. These are my favorite kinds of gifts, starting from the baby handprints, then the macaroni art and the clunky clay pots. I love them all and have tried to keep most of them.

But now they are growing up and their handwork is more grownup and more beautiful every year. They spent a week hand-marbling this paper, then painting on it and writing a message inside that made me cry. I told them I wanted to keep this card for the rest of my life and they said they’d bury me with it.

The bottle is also a treasure. Although it originally stood for “Snapple” they said the embossed “S” stands for Susan. My older girl decorated it with images of strong, beautiful women, and they picked flowers from their camp garden.

Aside from their presence on my birthday, these were the best presents ever.

There exist companions disposed to break one another to pieces, but there exists a friend sticking closer than a brother.~Proverbs 18:24

This is Cathy…she is an absolutely amazing woman and I am so blessed to have her in not only my life, but the lives of my family. She truly is closer to me than my own sisters.

Can you see that spread on the table behind her? She did that all by herself for about 6 different families and set up a softball game for the kids in those families. Why? For no other reason but that she wanted the kids to have a great time together one last time before school officially began.

I love Cathy and just cannot imagine my life without her in it. This is a small taste of what she does daily not only for me…her friends…family…but complete strangers. I have learned so much from her in the area of empathy and compassion for others.

“Remember, the greatest gift is not found in a store nor under a tree, but in the hearts of true friends.”~ Cindy Lew

“A faithful friend is the medicine of life.”~ Apocrypha

Trish

 I am a firm believer that we have to surround ourselves with people that inspire us and make us want to be a better person in order to be the best we can be.    We are all work’s in progress. Having the intuition to place good folks around us,  can only take us  to a higher level.  Goodness is imperative for our growth. 

 I have been blessed with a great sense of character.  I am fairly quick to cut those short that will not be good for me.  And to hold those close that I know will help me grown.  Some might think it is a little self righteous of me, but that is just how I roll.  I always trust my gut on people.   With a few rotten apples I have been very blessed to have good people come into my life.    

 One person who inspires me to be a better person is a dear friend of mine.  He and I met in college and have remained the best of friends for the last 17 years.  We have grown up together in a sense.  We have matured from the punky little drunken escapades in college to responsible mature adults (okay, I will admit he is WAYYY more mature than I am).

 He is a teacher/coach/mentor/friend and continues to blow me away with his love, concern and generosity for the kids in his community.  I consider myself a pretty good person, until I hear him speak of his days.  Whether it be the kid who needs an extra $5 for lunch or the kid who needs a ride to a game.  He is always there to step up and do what needs to be done.  He puts in long hours mentoring these kids, trying to show them love and respect when they maybe do not get the same at home.  He does this with no complaints.   I admire him for his tenacity, his drive to do well by people.    I never thought that the “jerk” that came trick or treating to my dorm room all those years ago would be such an inspiration to me.  I am not sure how much he is rewarded or even thanked for all his hard work and dedication.  I love him and respect him and he truly is an inspiration to me and makes me want to be a better person. 

Who inspires you?

Kim

Enjoy the following post written by Jenn:

It took me a long time to get back to the gym. The reasons why are not the important part, the important part is that I did it. I knew that I wasn’t going to get what I wanted by waiting for it to show up at my door. That hasn’t worked for me yet, by any means.

 So, after a lot of thought, and a less than stellar post written yesterday, I have decided to focus on what’s real and important.

 “No one can change my life, except me” I re-read the post I had written at Shannon’s request, and it looked like a list of complaints, with no real solutions brought to the table. The bottom line is, if I don’t make the changes, fully and mindfully, nothing is going to change. If I keep doing the same thing, I am a fool to expect different results.

 “Look at MY truth, and uncover the real issues” The real issues are never on top…that would be too easy to find and fix. Mostly, real issue sentences start with I think or I feel. Emotions are the root of everything, the good and the bad. EVERYBODY has issues; even the most “perfect” person has skeletons in their closet. Eventually, you will get to the point that you realize that everyone has a coping mechanism…some smoke, some drink, some run…what’s your choice? Remember that saying…if we all threw our problems in a pile, after seeing everyone else’s, we would grab our own back? You don’t always have to be able to solve your issues, but knowing that they are the reason behind choices makes the underlying motivation more clear (even when you make the wrong choices).

 “Try something that you’ve always wanted to do, something that SCARES you!” I felt complacent. Like nothing was changing, but everything was changing…I just had no control. I felt that I needed to reach some sort of goal to throw myself back on track, and get my head back around the fact that I can do anything I CHOOSE to do. The motorbike course was it for me. It was something I always wanted to do, and it both thrilled me and terrified me. When I accomplished it, and passed the test after only a 2 day course, I felt strong and confident again! (Of course, the leather doesn’t hurt either!)  It doesn’t need to be anything momentous, just whatever will show YOU your inner power!!

 “When you accomplish something that’s a challenge, change your view of yourself!” THAT is the most important part! Others will see you as a changed person, accomplishment is a huge ego booster…but your mindset needs to change too! It doesn’t matter what the accomplishment was, it could be sky diving or wearing frilly underwear under your construction clothes….YOU are now a warrior!! Just like the first step on a journey, one thought can start the ball rolling to change a mind set!!

 “It’s sometimes hard to get past the way you see yourself in the mirror” but the only person that can change YOUR outlook is you! People will see the new confidence when you accomplish something…try to move that forward in other areas of your life. Once, when I was really down on myself, my friend Linda told me that the only reason she didn’t get pushed around when she was younger was because I taught her that she had a voice and she could stand up for herself. I feel very proud of that!!

 “Change” when you change your expectations of yourself, you have to change your beliefs. After all, if you didn’t believe that you could accomplish something, why would you even try? Once you have created that accomplishment, your beliefs will start moving forward to the next challenge. Somewhere along the line, some woman threw off the “beliefs” that men had them pigeon holed into….or else we would still be at home doing the ironing like a good little woman. Give yourself the credit you are due for the success! Celebrate!!

 “Realize that YOU are a changed person” This is the hardest one for me. I accomplished it, I need to be able to say thank you when I get a compliment. Don’t forget who may be watching! Someone who hasn’t gotten to the bravery part of their journey may just need to see that it’s possible to accomplish something by moving one step at a time. We all teach by being an example, so BE PROUD of what you have changed, don’t brag but be open with your successes!

 NOW THAT YOU HAVE ACCOMPLISHED THIS, WHATS NEXT???

Jenn

This is not just a “celebration of diversity.” It’s not all “we are the world” here. It’s a tough, honest look at what it means to have a family that doesn’t match most others. It’s about dealing with racism on a personal level (what do you do if Grandma doesn’t approve of the child you’ve brought into your family?) and on a larger level (what if your teenager gets pulled over by the cops?). It’s about teaching kids a program called WISE-UP, which is basically “How to deal with stupid and intrusive questions they are bound to hear,” such as “Is that your real mom? How come your brother doesn’t look like you? How much did your parents pay to get you? Is your mother a drug addict? In jail?” (these are all REAL questions that have really been asked)

This camp is a place where everyone belongs. Where nobody questions each other about the “realness” or legitimacy of their family. Where people can come together to share the losses they’ve experienced (and anyone touched by adoption has experienced loss) and to celebrate the families that love them. We have adopted people as young as 9 months and as old as 58. It’s a tough, tender, honest, place where young people get to play and be loved by young adult role models who look like them. (I LOVE MY COUNSELORS!)

It’s more work than I could ever have imagined. I’m still reeling from exhaustion. But also from joy at having brought it into being once again.

I strongly believe that you can meet someone once in your life time and carry a bond with them forever.  This group of women are like that to me.  We met on a cruise and from it a sisterhood developed.  I love and miss each and everyone of them!

“Good friends are like stars…. You don’t always see them, but you know they are always there”

Shannon

So Peaceful

S0 strong

Made me just want to hug a tree…:-)

Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.
John Muir

In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.
John Muir

The power of imagination makes us infinite.
John Muir

Let’s start the week feeling the strength and peaceful qualities from the trees that are near us.  Bringing more peaceful strength into our lives can help us on many levels; especially giving us the perseverance to meet our goals.

Gently moving forward,

Kat

As a single, 20 year old who would be raising this child alone, I remember the words I spoke when the stick turned blue.  “My life is over.” 

That was the moment my life began.

P.S. And the gumption to get off the couch and start the transformation…