Sunday, January 29, 2012

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Tonight's picture was taken in February of 2009 in the Lombardi Clinic. As you can see Mattie was sitting in his wheelchair and getting his left foot painted red. Why? Because Jenny and Jessie (his amazing art therapists) were creating a Pediatrics welcome sign on the fifth floor of the hospital, and they wanted to place hand prints of children treated at the hospital on this sign. Mattie listened to that request and was not interested at ALL. Until I said what about a foot print? Particularly a footprint of "Curious George." The name associated with Mattie's left leg. The ONLY appendage of Mattie's not ravaged by cancer. Mattie LOVED the idea and sat still for the painting process. I typically do not show two pictures a night, but I wanted you to see the finished product.



This sign can be found on the fifth floor of Georgetown University Hospital. It greets everyone to the pediatric units. Notice the red footprint on the upper right hand corner. This is Mattie's left foot. Though Mattie is no longer with us, I can't pass this sign without thinking of that day in February of 2009 or naturally of Mattie!




Quote of the day: Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever. ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Though the goal was to rest this weekend, I have done everything BUT that! I spent a great deal of time yesterday and today working on Foundation items. As the afternoon rolled around, I had signed up to attend a "Zumba Explosion" fundraiser in Alexandria, VA. This fundraiser was organized by Brooke Curran, who Peter and I got connected with through our friend Tina. Brooke loves to run and is committed to running a marathon in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and all SEVEN continents. Brooke runs now to raise money for five local charities in Alexandria, VA. All charities that support a local children's cause!

Tina connected us to Brooke on Facebook and Brooke learned about our Whole Foods event on January 25. We had the pleasure of meeting Brooke in person at Whole Foods and we appreciated her support and enthusiasm for our cause. So when I learned about her mission to support children and that she was doing a zumba fundraiser today, it seemed like a great match for me. In fact my zumba instructor encouraged us to go, and there was a group of four of us from my zumba class in attendance tonight. The four of us danced together and chatted throughout the evening. On an aside, I have really learned that NOT all zumba classes and instructors are created equal. I have done zumba now on Princess Cruises, in my weekly class with Jenny, and now tonight at the Caryle Club with Zumba Fitness instructors. There is a lot of truth to the fact that you need to find the right class for you. The beauty of Jenny's class is she is a trained dancer and therefore her class gets you dancing, not only jumping around. I love the way Jenny's class makes me feel. Nonetheless, tonight got me to forget about some of my own pains for a while, and of course gave me the opportunity to spend time with my friend Heidi and to support a good cause.

I invite my readers to check out Brooke's website and the charities she supports. Brooke is an excellent example of someone who has taken something she loves and channels it to help and give back to others. Please visit: www.runningbrooke.com