October 30th, 2010

Pam and Lynn

When I asked Pam if she thought
she and Lynn would like to go
walk around a long-forgotten,
overgrown cemetery on the
city's east side she said
"Sure. Maybe."

They did end up joining me this morning
for a long walk around
Evergreen Cemetery.
It was established long ago
as a beautiful burial ground for
African Americans who lived and
worked in Richmond.

It's been forgotten.
And it's overgrown.
And sad.
But it's hopeful--because a small
group of volunteers are trying to
clear some of the growth and restore
the cemetery to a place where there can
be eternal rest.

And where Bertha E. Thompson's
membership in a
Forget-Me-Not Club
will continue, even in her death.

October 29th, 2010

Elaine Carter Whiddon

It makes me laugh that Elaine
has "Family Feud" listed as one
of her interests on her Facebook page.

I am happy (and lucky) to know
Elaine because of her fierce dedication
to her own family.

She's part of Beau's Brigade, a team that
gets together every spring to raise funds to
find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis (CF), a life-threatening
disease that her grandson Beau is living with.

Elaine makes a donation to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
every year that
gets Beau's Brigade on the back of the
event t-shirt. The first year that I added it
to the event t-shirt we had a lot of sponsors and logos and
Beau's Brigade was printed a little lower on the t-shirt.
The next year, when it came time for Elaine to make her donation,
she called me, a little sheepishly, and said that she had
a special request.
"I'm old," she said, "and like to tuck my
t-shirts in. When I tuck last year's shirt in Beau's team
name gets hidden in my pants."

BEAU'S BRIGADE
is now printed very near
the top of the t-shirt.
For Elaine and her generosity.
For reasons only I know
(well, you know, too, now).

Even though Beau's Brigade only gets together
one day of the year to walk as a team, Elaine is
a bright spot 365 days a year for me--as I am sure she is
for her family and all of those who know her.

xoxo

October 28th, 2010

Gina Greco

This is an ordinary photo of an extraordinary woman.
(After all, I use a cell phone camera, and we were at Panera,
and it was 9:30 on a Tuesday morning, nothing at all
out of the ordinary)

But here is Gina of Must Love Paws Bakery
and there isn't anything ho-hum about her.

That she dreams and sets goals for herself
makes her just like the rest of us.

That she is constantly living those dreams
and reaching those goals
sets her apart from many of us.

Gina left a job in the high-rise corporate world to
make organic dog treats in her basement.
Because
that is what she wanted to do.

Did she have all the answers before she took the leap?
Did she have to figure stuff out as she went along?
Did she know she'd be able to make this work?

I don't know. But she knew she had to try.

She's brave, passionate, sincere, and
she's here.

Gina's also a very good listener when
other people start going on and on about
their own dreams.

Thank you, Gina, for being an example of
what we can do when we want to.

Happy Thursday.

October 27th, 2010

Patti Digh and Kathryn Schuth

It's been a YEAR since I started this blog. For the first couple of weeks, I so loved the task of having to truly appreciate at least one person, every day. Like so many things that I love to do, I let it slide. I'm climbing out of that slump this morning to recognize my friends Patti and Kathryn who keep me writing whether I want to or not. Here we are working on, uh, uh, a project together. I'd really love to see it fly one day and resolve to do my part to make that happen. Even though I did not win the lottery last night (AGAIN) I feel lucky this morning.