Sunday, August 6, 2017Tonight's picture was taken on August 9, 2008. Mattie was adjusting to being in the hospital and was receiving his first round of chemotherapy that week. Early on during Mattie's battle, friends came practically daily to visit him. I think taking any child to visit someone in the hospital is daunting and scary. But parents really rose to the occasion and wanted to be supportive and they wanted their children to understand what was happening (to a certain extent) to their classmate. Naturally as Mattie's condition got worse, his disabilities more severe, and his prognosis more grim, the visits stopped. Mattie truly did not want to interact with others from the outside world as he understood all too well how his life was changing. Right from the beginning Linda (Mattie's child life specialist) was there to help not only Mattie and me, but all his friends who came to visit him in the hospital. As you can see, Linda set up a painting party on the floor right outside Mattie's room. This helped his friends engage with him through an activity they were all familiar with, which helped his friends transition better into the hospital experience.
Quote of the day: Once you have a clear idea of your priorities – that is your values, goals and high leverage activities, organize around them. ~ Stephen Covey
There is a lot of truth to Covey's quote tonight. When I go through my closet and assess it now, I only keep things that match my priorities. Which for me means things focused on childhood cancer and the Foundation. So with this philosophy in mind it really made tossing things much easier. Nonetheless, there are many of Mattie's favorite toys in this closet, not to mention all of our Christmas decorations. Things Mattie LOVED. I have yet to deal with these items, and for the most part they usually get shuffled around the closet. I was in NO MOOD to address any of this today, but do feel good about what we did accomplish last weekend and this weekend.
1 comment:
I could hug Mattie's Child Life Specialist. We would so have gotten a long well. I loved doing the floor projects with big sheets of paper, paints, markers, whatever the kids wanted. The smiles & involvement was so present. Everyone worked at their speed and how they saw their area.
Closet cleaning is a daunting task. But true when you have a goal, focus, it is not as hard to toss! As far as Mattie's things go, why do you ever have to get rid of them? Special items of our lives are meant to save. They help keep a memory present with their presence on a shelf or sitting on a table. I would keep those forever
Post a Comment