Thursday, December 1, 2011Tonight's picture was taken in November of 2008. This was just days after Mattie's second limb salvaging surgery and though confined to his bed (which works beautifully for an active six year old!), Linda (Mattie's childlife specialist) and Jessie and Jenny (Mattie's art therapists) devised a game to entice Mattie to use his right arm (the arm that was previously operated on a month before). The game involved fishing! They knew Mattie liked to go fishing with Peter, so they decided to bring the fish to him instead. The bin that Jenny was holding represented the tank filled with fish. Inside the tank were all sorts of pop-it plastic pieces to represent water and then in and amongst the water pieces were plastic fish that had a magnet on the end of each one. They created a magnetic fishing pole, and literally right on Mattie's bed, he was throwing his fishing line into the tank to retrieve magnetic fish. These women worked very hard to engage Mattie, to keep him talking, and to feel empowered and important. At times their efforts seemed super human which is why I unofficially nicked named them Mattie's Angels (Charlie had his angels and so did Mattie!).
Quote of the day: Exploration is really the essence of the human spirit. ~ Frank Borman
This morning I had the opportunity to attend Dr. Bob Bies' "Creativity and Innovation" business school class at Georgetown University. On September 8 and November 17, when Peter and I attended those classes, it was related to Foundation content. Today, I was able to observe and participate in the class as a student, and then in the last 15 minutes of class, a Georgetown Business School reporter came in to interview us and the students. She then took a photo of our entire group. This is a story worth telling, not only because it is about childhood cancer and Mattie, but because Peter is a graduate of this business school and Bob was his professor. Now years later, this professor-former student team reunite to stimulate a new generation of young minds and connect them with a real life community example. When Peter was attending business school, he spoke often to me about Bob. There are some professors who stand out in our educational experiences, and Bob was one of those educators for Peter. I naturally absorbed that fact, but not sitting in on his classes or having met Bob while Peter was going to school, I had no personal insights. It is quite ironic that years later, here I am sitting in a business school class and watching Bob in action. Bob is a born educator and what captures my attention about him is his passion. He is passionate about his subject matter and connecting with his students. In fact, as I was sitting in class today, I thought to myself.... maybe I could have been interested in business if I had been introduced to a professor like Bob. What intrigues me about Bob is that his class has a psychological component to it. After all, you can't successfully work in a business or help a business if you do not understand your co-workers or your clients. Relating to your clients and thinking outside the box to deliver a product really speaks to me. To me these are also crucial factors in developing a solid counseling relationship.
Bob always begins his class with a fun exercise to get his students to think creativity. Today's exercise was entitled, "The Genius Test." He gave us several minutes individually to complete this task. This is a task right up Peter's alley, but not necessarily mine. I can think creativity, but I am better without parameters. If Peter were sitting next to me, he would have gotten the majority of these right away. Nonetheless, I actually had a good time with these, but I am quite certain as we age our ability to be facile with this kind of information dwindles. Whereas the college students are able to easily play right into this. Which is important. Stimulating this kind of thinking definitely puts you in the right framework as you begin participating in the class session! Needless to say, I thought some of my readers may get a kick out of this test, so I typed it in below. I promise to give you the answers tomorrow night! Enjoy!
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Genius Test (mind you this is the kid version)
Directions: Find the words that fit. Example: 16= O in a P.
You need to figure out what the "O" and the "P" stand for. In this case the answer is 16 Ounces in a Pound.
1) 26=L of the A
2) 7=D of the W
3) 31=F at B R
4) 101=D
5) 52=C in a D
6) 7=W of the W
7) 88=P K
8) 13= S on the A F
9) 365=D in a Y
10) 18=H on a GC
11) 90=D in a R A
12) 200=D for P G in M
13) 50=S in the U
14) 3=B M (S H T R)
15) 4=Q in a G
16) 24=H in a D
17) 4=W on a C
18) 1=H on a U
19) 60=S in a M
20) 9=P on a B B T
21) 40=D and N of the GF
22) 28=D in F
23) 64=S on a C B
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After this genius test, Bob then showed the class a video clip from the movie, Apollo 13 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAmsi05P9Uw). A movie I am quite familiar with. He showed the class the scene in which Tom Hanks and his crew members discover there is a problem and the shuttle is leaking their oxygen supply into the atmosphere. In other words, it was the segment in which the famous line... Houston we have a problem.... was delivered. As a former undergraduate educator, I am well aware of the power of movies and video clips to capture the minds and attention of my students. This clip today was used quite effectively, because it set up the discussion of...... what makes one a good leader!? NASA couldn't just guess and come up with solutions. They had to intelligently think this problem through and work as a team to bring these men home from space.
The class discussion fascinated me, because I was hearing all sorts of ideas flowing about what they feel constitutes an effective leader. Some of the thoughts that captured my attention were:
What makes a good leader?
1) allowing others on your team to think creativity
2) finding meaning in what you are doing (that one's tasks are not done just because that is part of your job, instead what drives you is your personal mission and convictions)
3) asking questions and not being afraid to ask questions
4) taking risks
5) having persistence
6) tolerating ambiguity
Bob then discussed with the class the challenges of starting a new business. He mentioned that so many new businesses flop and are not sustainable, in addition, he also mentioned that many people may want to start a business, but because of the lack of leadership skills mentioned above, the ideas never materialize. What I was taking away from this conversation is what Peter and I have really done is established a new business. Naturally my readers are probably saying.... of course Vicki, what do you think Mattie Miracle is?????!!! To me Mattie Miracle is an extension of my baby, so I do not think about it in business terms, but while sitting in class today, I stepped back and said indeed we have created a business and what Bob is saying to us indirectly is you have done something that not everyone has the strength, courage, or skills to do. So I take this as a huge compliment!
When the business school reporter came into the classroom, she posed a question to the students and went around the room for answers. Her question was..... how has working with Mattie Miracle this semester influenced you? Here are some of the responses I captured......
1) It was exciting to be able to apply business concepts to a real life example.
2) We had the opportunity to think big and have the freedom to develop different strategies for Mattie Miracle.
3) Mattie Miracle has a huge emotional component associated with it. By helping this non-profit, we are in essence reflecting the true mission of the University.
4) Working with Mattie Miracle has helped change my perspective on work and life. It is the first class I talked about when I went home for Thanksgiving break.
5) Having the chance to see a sick child's face "glowing" with excitement over coming to a University sporting event was special.
6) Learning about the challenges of starting a new business was enlightening.
7) Having the opportunity to go to the Hospital and see children who are sick was important and humbling.
I end with a thought. Bob gave his class the quote that I used tonight on the blog. Exploration can come in many forms. For Peter and I, our exploration was the development of the Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation. This exploration could not have happened without being deeply tied to our spirit. In our case, our human spirit is guided and motivated by the seven year journey we had raising Mattie. Which is why during challenging times with the Foundation, we always go back to what grounds us..... and that is of course our son and using what he taught us to help others.
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