THIRTEEN

I had a health scare. I jumped right into imagining myself in surgery, having chemotherapy and in search of the perfect wig. The right wig seemed important. I was thinking long auburn locks.

My lovely "more than my boyfriend," after working a 12 hour night shift at that hospital, sat by my side exhausted while I waited for my tests. What a wonderful man. I was escorted back to the waiting room where all the women were sporting open-front gowns. Lots of breasts "almost" on display. My name was called and I followed the mammographer. She was incredibly kind. I felt safe and somehow she was able to keep my fear at bay. After the radiologist saw the results...they wanted more pictures. You can imagine how I was feeling at that point. I went in for one thing and they found another? Lori brought me back again and kept me calm. She assured me that everything would be okay. After an ultra-sound and a consultation, I found out that I was going to live. (You can probably gather that I am a bit black and white with my thinking.)

Because my current gratitude practice is writing 365 thank yous, I went home and sent a note to Lori. I wrote another merci to my general practioner, Anna, who has been my doctor for 10 years. I saw her earlier this week for my initial consultation. She is great. Even when I might be having an exam that involves stirups, she makes it okay. Then, of course, one to my boyfriend. That brings me to 13. Only 352 to go! Everywhere I look I have someone or something to be grateful for.

Lastly, I give thanks to my body. M.J. Ryan writes :"The truth is, no matter what we look like, we are all given bodies that keep us alive, and for that fact alone they are worthy of our appreciation."
I am grateful that I am healthy. It's easy to take our wellness forgranted.

I have written a lot about female anatomy today. If you are a woman, be grateful for your body. If you are a man..perhaps be grateful for your significant other's healthy organs. I should stop writing now, as I am getting goofy.

365 THANK YOU NOTES!

"If the only prayer you say in your whole life is "thank you" that would suffice." -Meister Eckhart

I am currenting "screading" the book 365 Thank Yous, by John Kralik. (I heard someone use the word "screading" and I thought it was clever. Scan/reading...which is mostly what I do with the piles of books by my bedside.)

The story is about how writing thank you notes for an entire year turned around the authors life. He had hit an all time low one December, and decided that his life would be "at least tolerable" if instead of focusing on what he didn't have, he could be grateful for what he had. He set out to write 365 thank you notes in the following year to show his gratitude. It made a huge difference.

 As I have shared before, what we focus on expands. I was emailing a friend and said that writing this blog "alters my mindset" because instead of ruminating on my daily crap,  I search to find something to share. When you are looking for good, it appears all around you.

I have decided to embark on a 365 thank you note journey. My goal is to hand write if possible. Who doesn't love getting something in the mail besides bills and catalogs? I am on day 7. I have to say that it's not as easy as it sounds. However, this fabulous idea is a way to insure that I take at least a few minutes daily to reflect on the people in my life that bring me joy, happiness and love.  

I invite you to open you eyes and your heart and acknowledge the people in your life that "alter your mindset" and make you appreciate your world.  

DANCE LIKE NO ONE IS WATCHING...OR PERHAPS A TRAIN STATION FULL OF PEOPLE

"Laughter, song and dance create emotional and spiritual connection; they remind us of the one thing that truly matters when we are searching for comfort, celebration, inspiration, or healing: We are not alone." Brene Brown, The Gifts of Imperfection

This is a fun video. It appears that my statement about not watching youtube isn't so true. Looks like I am developing an addiction. When my children were little, I would push all the furniture out of the way and have a "dance party." This was a nightly event. Those of you with kids know that 5pm is the bewitching hour. We boogied our way out of naughty behavior. I would encourage you to put on your favorite music(maybe a tutu) and "get down on it." I guarantee it will make you feel good. And dare to look like a ding-dong.

THE BEAUTY OF COMMUNITY!

Here is the email that was sent to the local radio station from a mother of an autistic child. It's lovely.

Greetings Bret,

My name is Rebecca Bevirt. I have a miracle story about my son Jeremy. He is autistic, bi-polar, ADHD, with learning disabilities and physical disabilities as well. He attends Centaurus High School. He is graduating this year.

This past weekend he was elected Prom King. Prom was held at the Denver Aquarium. This is just incredible. I mean how many mainstream high school seniors elect an autistic kid Prom King? amazing. Jeremy had several 'autistic' moments during prom and had to work really hard to get thru them (including his shock, panic and running off the dance floor when he heard he had to do the first dance with the Prom Queen :-). But he did made it thru Prom with the help of his friends, one of his soccer coaches, and me.

When his name was announced as Prom King, the kids in the room just roared Jeremy Jeremy Jeremy. He wouldn't put the crown on but held it up. A friend of his thru Girls Soccer, Sami, was crowned Queen. She really was 'there' for him during Prom when he was having his autistic moments. This is just such a moment in a life. If you only knew (perhaps you have an idea) just how far he's come to reach a point like this or that it was even possible, how hard it was to actually be there at Prom (just leaving in the limo was a huge leap for him and he was not happy), how hard he has worked, and how much he has been supported...it is just amazing.

This is just such a cool thing. This shows that there are small communities around that will pull kids thru. These kids who voted him as Prom King did not do this because my son is one of the 'cool' kids, or they were asked to do so because it's National Autism Month, or that it's PC to do so. They did it because they accept him within the school setting despite his differences. They are such an example.

When Jeremy first went to Centaurus, he joined the soccer team as an equipment manager. He can't play due to physical limitations. At first there were some hesitations and it took great patience to work with him. But he has matured over the years and has a few soccer coaches who just took him under their wing. The soccer boys and girls also did the same. His first friends were the Latinos ... then it gradually expanded to include other kids. One of Jeremy's favorite soccer quotes is “I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team, I defer to it and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual, is the ultimate champion." this could not be truer than the entire team of Centaurus High.

It would be wonderful to recognize these kids, coaches and teachers in our own community. If everyone could learn from them, what a gift it would be to all the autistic kids in this country. It is really hard being a parent of an autistic child, as you might know, even in this part of the country, the resources seem slim, budgets are low, kids taunt and tease, we as parents have to be super uber advocates for everything from babysitting to medical to school,....and I am so grateful to the 'team'....they will and have made a difference in one Autistic person's life.Where Jeremy ends up, who knows...but he knows that this has been a most special experience...and that this community of people has been there for him...in a really special way.

Rebecca Bevir

Read more: http://kbco.com/pages/bco_morningshow.html#ixzz1KDRVDU9J

AUTISM AWARENESS

"Gratitude begets itself, ripens into flowers, snow falls, mountains of more gratitude." Geneen Roth, Women, Food and God

When I posted yesterday's story I was unaware that it is autism awareness month. The DJ of the morning show has a child with autism and he shares with us some of his experiences.

There was an over-whelming request to post the email that I tried to recreate for you in yesterday's message.  I am hoping that the woman who wrote it will agree to share it , so I can share it with you.

Have a beautiful day.

PROM KING

"Mental sunshine will cause the flowers of peace, happiness and prosperity to grow upon the face of the Earth. Be a creator of mental sunshine." -Graffiti on the wall in Berkeley, California.

I heard a story on the radio that touched me this morning. It's definitely worth including in the "Human Acknowledgement Project" blog. Our local station, KBCO, has an email segment each morning. Today a woman wrote in about her son. He is an autistic, bipolar boy with learning disabilities. He is graduating from high school this year. Here is the beauty, he was crowned Prom King last weekend. His mother said he had some panicky reactions(especially when he became aware that he had to dance with the prom queen.) and the students could only hold the crown above his head as he couldn't quite handle the stimulation of it upon him.  Congratulations to all!

Wow! This says a lot about this boy, his parent's and even more about the young people. The student body voted for him! Isn't that inspiring? These kids saw beauty in his humanness. I look back at high school and think about how self-centered and mean kids could be. I look at what "we think" teenagers are like now.  There is so much more goodness than I see. There is kindness in this world. 

Today I am grateful that I get to hear these stories that fill my heart with happiness and hope.  The more I "practice" being grateful, the more I see that inspires my faith in others. It's true that what we focus on expands.

I have a bracelet that reads : "Thoughts become things, choose the good ones." Choose the good thoughts today!

FREE HUGS

I love this video. I can watch it over and over. I happened upon it last night. I haven't seen this in eons. I rarely, if ever, visit utube. I know, it's almost sacrilegious in our culture not to watch the videos of hamsters whirling around their wheels until they whip off. Okay, I saw that one. Oh well.

 This morning I got a call from my boyfriend who was at "Starfest"(A science fiction convention...for those of you not in "the know.") He said there was someone running around with a "Free Hugs" sign. It wasn't a Klingon. Bummer. That could have been tons of fun. He has not seen the video, nor was he aware that I watched it 4 times last night. Interesting. Then, I dropped my son off downtown earlier this afternoon and what did I see? That's right...a young lady carrying a "Free Hugs" sign on the mall. This video was originally posted in September of 2006. Why now? It appears that I am being called to dole out the HUGS. I can embrace that.

 Human contact/touch is important for our well being. Hugs have been shown to reduce heart rates, improve overall moods, lower blood pressure and increase nerve activity. How about that?  I heard that we need something like 8 hugs a day for our health. Okay, I could be making that up. Non-the-less, get out and spread some love. Wrap your arms around someone and hug the hell out of them!!

Please visit http://www.freehugscampaign.org/ to read the story of Juan Mann, the person who began this movement. His mission was/is to hug strangers to brighten their lives.