Tuesday - too late start to the day. Also struggling about what to write. Guess I should just ruminate and something will bubble up - kind of like my creative writing group. It works just to put pen to paper sometimes - start by scribbling, even write something like, "what I meant to say" just to get something down. And then there's the whole how much to divulge thing - don't know if you've noticed I've throttled myself in this blog, sharing intimately but hopefully appropriately. Tonight tantra with Martin - is that OK to share? It's an important part of who I am. And why the heck are we so squirmy about anything sexual? Seriously! Why is that? It's a huge part of what makes us tick - why can't we talk about it? Sigh.
Last night went by myself to Petterino's to sing. Sat by myself, was wistful but OK. Did well with the new eating modality - glass of red wine and a shrimp cocktail - not much food but totally fine. This morning good talk with Lucas - she's in Urbana Tuesday through Thursday. Yes, let's talk about her - what an inspiration! Most of my blog readers know her challenges and accomplishments: three children, the youngest deaf, a husband who works two low-paid jobs but still they live at the poverty level, she has health issues that make it impossible to drive, and yet by sheer force of her personality, true grit and cleverness she is grabbing the brass ring for her family each and every day. This summer she got Henry implanted by the best surgeon in the country (Baltimore). She has secured full scholarships for her two eldest children at great private schools where they are getting top notch educated. She found a program for Henry that will, in about three years, get him on a par with his hearing peers. The fact that the program is in Urbana and she lives in Chicago didn't stop her. She thought about it for a day, worked through the logistics and then announced to her family that she and Henry would live in Urbana four days a week - "it's a sacrifice that we, as a family, will make for this deserving child," she told them.
And the problems she encountered - they would stagger and deflate most of us! Needing to find a job there with unemployment so high, multiple housing false starts - a filthy commune overrun with mice that she couldn't abide, then a tiny room they shared with someone who used it on the weekends in a Jewish housing center. Now she's in a tiny house in the worst part of Urbana, rife with drugs and crime but it only costs her $180/month including utilities. Mice again, but she's doing battle with them. And the job - somehow she talked her way into being the Director of Marketing for a new senior housing complex that is largely empty and needs tenants. Her qualifications - absolutely none (her last job was cleaning toddlers' butts and doing dishes in a Montessori school). She was terrified...somehow she managed to convince the owners she had the personality (if nothing else) for the job - her charisma and chutzpah won them over (and the fact that they only have to pay her $12/hour!) And then the reality....."Holy shit...what do I do now?" But in typical Liza (Lucas) style she just dove in (that whole "fools rush in where angels fear to tread" thing) and in only a few weeks she's got two of the units rented which is, to the owners, nothing short of a miracle. Way to go Liza!!!!
Lesson there for the rest of us is so well illustrated by how she lives her life. It's not that she's not fearful and terrified when life throws her a curve. What's different is her response. Her mind goes into hyper-drive and she, one by one, works solutions to all the challenges and obstacles. Then she enlists the help she needs to make those solutions a reality. If one course of action goes awry, before the ink has barely dried, she's already worked out a course correction. I am very proud of her.
She still has her "Henry's Miracle" donation website active - one of her solutions for the financial predicament has been soliciting donations for his education. People have been touched by his story and the family's indefatigable energy. They know she is dancing on a wet paper towel, staying one step ahead of the wolf. There have been a few readers of this blog who have stepped up - dear DJ for one who arranged several sizable donations. If you want to read more, go to friend James blog where you can read all about Henry and see pictures of Liza and him. That site is http://packratnest.wordpress.com (scroll to next to last entry). From there, he provides the link to the actual donation site which is https://www.wepay.com/donations/henrys-miracle
All for today. Your challenge could be reflection on Liza and her family's life - using her for inspiration. They are barely making it and yet in so many important ways they're thriving. Redefines happiness, I think. Oh, and did I tell you, if her life wasn't already enough of a challenge, she just fell and broke her hand running for a bus to transport she and Henry back to Chicago last Friday? In typical Liza fashion she and I talked through all the challenges of having a non-working hand. Within minutes she made plans to buy sports bras (can't hook a bra and she is alone in Urbana), get wide headbands to hide her dirty hair (can't use a blow dryer), get a rolling suitcase for their laundry because she can't stuff her backpack, wear black slacks under her work dresses cuz she can't pull on tights - and more! She is unstoppable! I just hope things can get easier for her - it's as if mischevious gods above are rolling dice on just how much she can handle before they break her.
Peace,
Sarah
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