Friday, February 17, 2012Tonight's picture was taken in January of 2008. One weekend we took Mattie to Mason Neck State Park to walk around and explore. In typical Mattie fashion, he found himself a stick that he carried with him throughout the park. As some of my faithful readers may recall, Mattie collected a walking stick on all his nature adventures. But Mattie wouldn't toss the stick once the walk was over. OH NO! Instead, he would transport the stick home with us and then add it to his stick collection in our complex's common space.
This stick collection still exists today, though ivy has grown in and amongst the sticks.
Quote of the day: Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. ~ Mother Teresa
Today was a doctor and hospital free day. Which was needed because I find those two things can put me in hyper alert mode given the situation. I was planning on spending the day at home working on Foundation things and really had no intention of getting outside.
As the morning progressed I got an email from my friend Tina. She wanted me to know that it was going to be a lovely day, the sun was shining and headed to be in the upper 50's. Too nice of a day not to go outside and walk. So we met to walk in a nature preserve in her area. I had gone once with Ann to this preserve to pick up her children from summer camp, but I really never walked around the grounds or went into the beautiful wooden lodge within the preserve. So today I saw a part of Alexandria I never saw before and got to hear about how this nature preserve was saved from having a road built right through it. Tina was instrumental in this preservation and as we walked I heard the story about the advocacy efforts that took place to save this land.
So it was walk in which I got to see trees, water, and geese, but it also was a walk in which I learned something about my friend. Sharing stories and learning about what a friend is passionate about are great gifts. Tina introduced me to one of the main educators at the preserve. This teacher uses her skills to bring alive science and nature for children in the local public schools. She was sharing with us stories today from the special education class that visited her classroom just an hour earlier and how they learned about penguins and then got to use modeling clay to illustrate what they learned. Tonight's Mother Teresa quote came to mind as I was hearing this teacher talk. Because this preserve's classroom environment gives many children opportunities they might not get in a typical school setting. Sometimes kids in school get labeled with a particular issue and problem. Yet when they come to the preserve the territory is neutral. Children can learn, explore, and perform hands on educational activities that not only stimulate the mind but also the spirit. It gives them the permission to be true to themselves and their character. It is within this classroom lodge some kids learn they are artists and are appreciated for their ideas and talents! What I reflected upon while hearing this teacher talking was that kind words are indeed short and easy to speak as Mother Teresa indicated, but they can have profound and life altering effects.
Getting outside today and in and amongst the trees and seeing the birds helped to reorient my mood. With Mattie's illness, I perfected the art of compartmentalizing some of my feelings. That may not sound healthy, but it actually is, because if I continued to live in a heightened state of anxiety and stress over my current situation, that would just be toxic for my health. So being able to forget about it even temporarily is therapeutic. Today I took a big first step for myself. I finally made an appointment with an acupuncturist for next week. I am a conventional medicine person, and yet I have learned that modern medicine can't provide a safe and effective relief for my headaches. Many of my friends have recommended I try acupuncture specifically for my headaches, so given all that I am managing right now pain wise I figured I had nothing to lose. A good friend of mine swears by this particular professional, so I look at this upcoming appointment as a ray of hope.
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