Lend A Hand

Wow, long time no see huh?

I know it’s been quite awhile since my last post and all I can say is that. as far as I can remember,  last year was the worst my family has ever lived through. Too many things went wrong and too few went right; financially, medically, emotionally, socially, in every way.

While things were keeping me away I did a lot of thinking about changes I wanted and needed to make both to my business and to my life. I wasn’t sure if blogging was something I wanted to do anymore, or if anyone would benefit if I continued.

Finally I decided I was trying to go about it in the wrong way for me. I am a casual, real, down earth person. Just a woman with a husband, three kids, and a cat. I have lots of opinions and thoughts about the way things are, the way they should be and the way they could be. From time to time people have told me these insights are interesting and I should do something about them.

So I will continue to blog. I’m throwing away the preset monthly topics and plan to ‘wing-it’ a bit more. I think the more real-life tone will add to the blog. Every post won’t have as clear a purpose but I hope you will get at least something from each one. Of course I want to know how all of you feel about this and if you have any suggestions, I will be glad to consider them.

To begin with I would like to chat about something I have been thinking about for the last few days. I’m sure most of you will remember when President Obama said this in a speech to the Democratic National Convention in 2004:

“There is not a liberal America and a conservative America – there is the United States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America and Latino America and Asian America – there’s the United States of America.” -Barack Obama

Do you also remember this little statement attributed to Aesop and repeated by numerous politicians since then:

“United we stand, divided we fall.”?

Even our Pledge of Allegiance talks about our nation “Indivisible”.

And yet we do divide ourselves in all sorts of different ways. Democratic or Republican, Conservative or Liberal, Rich or Poor, Northerner or Southerner, Christian or Jewish or Muslim or well this list could go on and on forever. Are you pro-life or pro-choice? Are you for or against gay marriage? Even groups such as Stay-at-home moms and Working moms have been know to go a few rounds in the ring.

My sons are at that wonderful teen age when everything is still black and white, right and wrong, good and bad. It is a happy place to live but a really, really annoying place to visit.

We’re all wrong. We’re all right. Everything comes to us in shades of grey – really. It is a massive waste of time and energy to fight each other about these things while the world is crumbling apart around us. Who knows? Maybe if we solve some of the big problems plaguing our nation, the little issues won’t matter as much anymore.

If I may have a little literary liberty here…

Only United will we Stand, Divided we can only fall. Looking forward to your comments.

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This month’s topic was War, terrorism, and the military. Unfortunately I had a tough time staying focused on this topic. Honestly I’ve written war off as a sort-of necessary evil and only hope that the powers that be will wake up and stop ticking off other countries, acting superior, and invading places where we don’t belong. Wishful thinking, huh?

Speaking of don’t belong, during June we’ll be talking about illegal immigration. I have some very strong opinions about illegal immigration which was not improved by the current swine flu epidemic. Specifically I’ll discuss how illegal immigration hurts both the American citizens and the immigrants. I will fight for helping people living in impoverished countries but I can’t stand it when people feel they have the right to go where they want and take whatever they please.

Happy Memorial Day & See You In June.

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While George W. may not have agreed with Edward Bulwer-Lytton when he said the “Pen is mightier than the sword”, I certainly do. Writing to the right people, the right way, enough times can really move mountains. Do you remember that part of the movie “The Shawshank Redemption” where Tim Robbins’s character writes a letter everyday to try and get funds for the library?

Eventually he receives a check for something like $250 (which was worth a lot more in those days). Instead of considering the matter resolved, he starts writing two letters a day. Finally the funding department surrenders and sends boxes and boxes of books, records, magazines, and research material along with a substantial monetary grant for the expansion of the library.

The power of the pen. After all, if writing to representatives was such a waste of time, why would activists and organizations keep asking us to do it? If words could not move people to take action, companies wouldn’t bother with advertising. While I wouldn’t suggest just writing a letter for something you feel strongly about, keep fighting on after your mail is sent.

In any case though a well written, concise letter stating exactly what it is you want done is the perfect first step to creating change.

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It is naive to think that our country is not undergoing a drastic change right now. Between the economy, substandard health care, failing education system, illegal immigration, rising unemployment, millions losing their homes to foreclosure and on top of all that, war raging overseas and a brand new flu virus hitting here at home. With all that to deal with, what should we do?

Should we sit back and hope our government will step in to pick up the pieces and put them all back together again like Humpty Dumpty U.S.A.? Or buy into the idea that all this is a natural flux in history and everything will eventually work itself out? We can support the media personalities that agree with our point of view and hope that their other listeners will take a stand for what’s right…

Or we can do something.

Almost every great movement in the history of this country – from the Revolution to Civil Rights – started around the kitchen tables and living rooms of America. Talking politics (and complaining about our government) is as American as apple pie.

And it will be at these informal chats that the first steps towards a better nation will be taken. It will be our actions, our beliefs, our movements that take our country back from the greedy CEOs and the politicians that are more concerned with their pockets than their people.

Now I’m not suggesting a coup or revolution. Get together with some like-minded neighbors, friends, and relatives and talk about pro-active steps you all can take to make real changes to our country. Decide what is the most important issue to your group and come up with an action plan to get what you want.

And Push.

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I hope this month was as much fun for you as it was for me. I also hope you’ve gotten as many supportive responses as I have from my community leaders. Furthermore I hope we made some kind of difference. That someone somewhere read something and committed to doing something about it. Just one small change, and then another small change, and on.

Next month we’ll be discussing a topic I am rather divided on. War, terrorism and the military. I’ll be talking about some things going on in the war. The reasons behind the most current wars, terrorists and terrorism. And our proud military which never gets enough support and prayers from us at home. Argue the war, Support the soldier.

The first month of regular post features seemed to go well. I enjoyed having something regular to write and I think the features were easy to read. Let me know if you disagree.

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Once the letters are mailed, the phone calls made and the emails sent you may be left feeling like “Now what?”

How can you do more to make the changes you want in the world? After all if we left everything to the powers that be, nothing would ever get done.

I’ve found the Internet to be an ideal way to get the word out about vital issues and facts about the country and the government. It is very easy to set up a webpage on Squidoo, Hubpages, Blogger or Tumblr. It’s also free. Once you’ve set up your page remember to bookmark it on Digg, Del.ici.ous, and Technorati just to name a few. Personally I like Squidoo because you can do just about anything you want with their pages (called lens) and you can set it up so that any money you earn through your lens goes directly to the charity of your choice.

If you prefer more “in the real world” actions, throwing a fundraiser or starting a grassroots movement may be a better fit. A fundraiser doesn’t have to be a major production (unless you want it to be), it can just be a simple yard sale or bake sale. You can offer to rake leaves or do simple landscaping to raise money for your favorite environmental cause. You could offer to walk dogs for your favorite animal cause. The important thing is to get your message out while raising money for your cause.

Meanwhile a grassroots movement involves getting together with more people of like minds who want to help you spread your message, inform others about your cause, raise money, talk to representatives, spread the news across the Internet and so on.

If you have a cause that really hits you in your heart, research starting a grassroots movement. In the future I will have a grassroots toolkit available here on this blog (LAH)

Anyone who has any question or needs advice, email me or find me on facebook and I’ll help you out as much as I can – Note my social networking widget in my sidebar.

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As you’ve probably noticed, I have pretty strong opinions. Still I try not to form opinions until I have a decent bank of knowledge about the topic and a firm understanding of both sides of the debate.

Yet there are still people that don’t agree with me on most things and there are people who don’t agree with me on anything.

It’s great that some people don’t see things my way. Maybe they know something that I don’t. Maybe they understand something that I don’t. Maybe, just maybe, I can learn a thing or two from them – and vice versa.

Hopefully I have something to say that can clear the way for someone out there. I hope I can teach a thing or two of interest. I’m just trying to make a difference the best ways I know how.

Remember that change is a two-way street. In order for others to be receptive to your point of view, you need to respect theirs. You don’t have to agree with it but you should acknowledge their right to any opinion whatsoever. Debate with facts and respect, not personal attacks.

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