Who says greatness has to be grandiose?
Maybe it is the touch from a single mother to her child leaving for school in the morning?
Or the smile given to an elderly person sitting alone in a restaurant?
It could be the change that buys a homeless man breakfast.
Maybe it is the warmth coming from the hands that cradle an abandoned puppy?
In that moment, in the lives of those being comforted, IT is enormous, even grandiose.
It is the song they dance to. The incentive to live.
It is greatness.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Heart of Stone Documentary
As alot of you know, I went to the Sundance Film Festival as a guest of Puma Footwear on behalf of Soles4Souls. Puma had a three foot long sneaker that celebrities signed; the shoe will be auctioned off online and the proceeds will benefit Soles4Souls. It was indeed a very surreal experience, to have conversed with people like Ashley Judd, Mo'Nique, Pierce Brosnan, Jeff Bridges, Michelle Trachtenbug, Susan Saradon, Nick Cannon, Anne Heche..just to name a few, wow.
But the highlight of my week came in the form of a chance meeting with producer Paul Bartick and his teenage son Max, who were waiting in our area to get their photos taken. After we asked each other what brought us both to Sundance, Paul and Max told me about the documentary they were showing at Slamdance (which is a part of Sundance representing more independent projects) I was captivated by the story behind the film, and this incredibly sweet family, and Paul brought us tickets.
The documentary blew me away, it is the true story of one man's mission (Principal Ron Stone) to change the culture of a what once was a prestigious high school in Newark, New Jersey. It highlighted the lives of three students (two of them being the neighborhood leaders of the Crips and Bloods, who are friends thanks to the influence of Principal Stone. The film was just AMAZING, and a reminder of the footprints we can leave in the lives of others. It is also a portrait of a great human being, Ron Stone, who decided to leave his comfortable principal's office and go out into the culture of students and DO life with them.
I am going to attach a link to the trailer for this wonderful film. It won the Slamdance Audience Award for Best Documentary!!!! Yay!!
PLEASE WATCH!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7oW8c6_VLc
So, amidst of glamour and glitz and snow of Park City, UT, I left challenged by this humble film. And reminded that it is what we do as individuals, in the circles around us, that matter the most!
But the highlight of my week came in the form of a chance meeting with producer Paul Bartick and his teenage son Max, who were waiting in our area to get their photos taken. After we asked each other what brought us both to Sundance, Paul and Max told me about the documentary they were showing at Slamdance (which is a part of Sundance representing more independent projects) I was captivated by the story behind the film, and this incredibly sweet family, and Paul brought us tickets.
The documentary blew me away, it is the true story of one man's mission (Principal Ron Stone) to change the culture of a what once was a prestigious high school in Newark, New Jersey. It highlighted the lives of three students (two of them being the neighborhood leaders of the Crips and Bloods, who are friends thanks to the influence of Principal Stone. The film was just AMAZING, and a reminder of the footprints we can leave in the lives of others. It is also a portrait of a great human being, Ron Stone, who decided to leave his comfortable principal's office and go out into the culture of students and DO life with them.
I am going to attach a link to the trailer for this wonderful film. It won the Slamdance Audience Award for Best Documentary!!!! Yay!!
PLEASE WATCH!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7oW8c6_VLc
So, amidst of glamour and glitz and snow of Park City, UT, I left challenged by this humble film. And reminded that it is what we do as individuals, in the circles around us, that matter the most!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Some little bits and pieces that will make up a BLOG
Hey Ya'll,
There is a plethora (look it up) of things I want to write about that, so here goes;
1. Livin the Music Benefit/Soles4Souls
Last week, the 501c3 Livin the Music (www.livinthemusic.org)hosted a concert to benefit Soles4Souls at the popular venue 3rd and Lindsley in Nashville. We had over a dozen artists perform at the event as well as participate in three shoe distributions that day. We gave out shoes at Lighthouse Mission Ministries, which runs a rehabilitation program for men who are struggling with alcohol and drug abuse. Then we headed to the International Newcomer Academy, a Metro Schools program for children who are refugees. The Academy tests their literacy, and teaches them English before they mainstream the students into the public school system. The last stop of the day before the concert was at the YWCA. We were able to visit their battered women's shelter and spend time with some very special women and children.
The concert itself was incredibly special, but I enjoyed the distributions the most. Big Machine Recording Artist Adam Gregory joined us for the events and sang at each stop, which was such a treat. The one on one contact with the men and women and children that we gave shoes to will be forever in my mind. I helped one young woman at the school lace her sneakers because she didn't know how. She was 14 years old.
It was a very special day and I was SO glad it went well!
2. Singing "Foreigner" tunes at church.
OK, I am very fortunate to be a part of such a GREAT church(www,hopepark.com) and I am frequently involved in the music there. Last Sunday, I covered the Foreigner tune "I Want To Know What Love Is". It was definitely a hair band moment, the people loved it, I often felt like I needed a perm and bangs while singing it. But I scored some serious points with this volunteer that I have been trying to reach out to for a couple of years. I always smile or say Hi and he just never really responds...being the people pleaser I am, I just keep trying...:)
Well, I walked by him Sunday and HE spoke the ME..."Great song, I loved it".....wow.....
OK, if it takes some hair band power ballads, I am all over it.
3. DEWEY
I just finished the book "Dewey" by Vicki Myron...sniff sniff. If any of you know me, you know how much I love my kitties. This nonfiction book is amazing. It is a MUST read. It is just another simple story about how ordinary people and things can make an extraordinary impact. I cried the last 5 chapters and for a while after I finished it, because it just impacted me SO personally. Please pick it up.
Alrighty then, that's it for now...Hey, FYI I am off to the Sundance Film Festival to represent Soles4Souls with Puma. We are going to have celebrities sign Puma shoes and then have an online auction and all of this will benefit Soles4Souls. So, stay tuned!!!!!!!
There is a plethora (look it up) of things I want to write about that, so here goes;
1. Livin the Music Benefit/Soles4Souls
Last week, the 501c3 Livin the Music (www.livinthemusic.org)hosted a concert to benefit Soles4Souls at the popular venue 3rd and Lindsley in Nashville. We had over a dozen artists perform at the event as well as participate in three shoe distributions that day. We gave out shoes at Lighthouse Mission Ministries, which runs a rehabilitation program for men who are struggling with alcohol and drug abuse. Then we headed to the International Newcomer Academy, a Metro Schools program for children who are refugees. The Academy tests their literacy, and teaches them English before they mainstream the students into the public school system. The last stop of the day before the concert was at the YWCA. We were able to visit their battered women's shelter and spend time with some very special women and children.
The concert itself was incredibly special, but I enjoyed the distributions the most. Big Machine Recording Artist Adam Gregory joined us for the events and sang at each stop, which was such a treat. The one on one contact with the men and women and children that we gave shoes to will be forever in my mind. I helped one young woman at the school lace her sneakers because she didn't know how. She was 14 years old.
It was a very special day and I was SO glad it went well!
2. Singing "Foreigner" tunes at church.
OK, I am very fortunate to be a part of such a GREAT church(www,hopepark.com) and I am frequently involved in the music there. Last Sunday, I covered the Foreigner tune "I Want To Know What Love Is". It was definitely a hair band moment, the people loved it, I often felt like I needed a perm and bangs while singing it. But I scored some serious points with this volunteer that I have been trying to reach out to for a couple of years. I always smile or say Hi and he just never really responds...being the people pleaser I am, I just keep trying...:)
Well, I walked by him Sunday and HE spoke the ME..."Great song, I loved it".....wow.....
OK, if it takes some hair band power ballads, I am all over it.
3. DEWEY
I just finished the book "Dewey" by Vicki Myron...sniff sniff. If any of you know me, you know how much I love my kitties. This nonfiction book is amazing. It is a MUST read. It is just another simple story about how ordinary people and things can make an extraordinary impact. I cried the last 5 chapters and for a while after I finished it, because it just impacted me SO personally. Please pick it up.
Alrighty then, that's it for now...Hey, FYI I am off to the Sundance Film Festival to represent Soles4Souls with Puma. We are going to have celebrities sign Puma shoes and then have an online auction and all of this will benefit Soles4Souls. So, stay tuned!!!!!!!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Home
I think the weather messes with my head sometimes. If it is rainy or cold. I just want to be sad, to withdraw to myself. I wish this part of me didn't surface at times, but it does. So, on this cold, rainy day, I am going to polish off this last bit of my melancholy mood and let it go.
Last week, my mom called me with some interesting news. My childhood home, her childhood home, too, had been demolished to the ground and the rest standing was set on fire. It was done on purpose, and I knew it eventually was going to happen. The house has been uninhabitable for a number of years, but the thought of going home and not seeing it there just saddens me.
It was a little farmhouse that my grandparents added on to. To most people, it would not mean much. It wasn't big, nor was it fancy. But for me, it was home. My mom and I moved around so much, and yet, I lived there repeatedly during my childhood, and then in my early twenties, I lived in it's backyard, I could ALWAYS see it.
On the patio, my Papa had a huge freezer, and a washer/dryer. And JUNK. I remember being little and looking at the dead frozen ducks in the freezer....really, what were they doing there? My cousin Davy threw a kittycat in the dryer one time, and we rescued him quickly. The back door was brown, with a window in it. You walked in and there was a kitchen/den combo.
In that den, I had my very own Christmas tree. I made the star with yellow poster board and dressed up like the Virgin Mary and wrapped my bean bag baby Jennifer up in swaddling towels as the baby Jesus. I have a picture of this.
The kitchen had beautiful wooden cabinets in it, and one night I saw the biggest mouse...RAT in my life on the counter.
There was a long hallway that led to bedrooms and the front of the house. My papa used to stand at one end, and growl at me...."GRRRR...I'm the boogaman...." I would squeal with delight.
The front left bedroom was MINE. My mama painted it a baby blue and moved my canopy bed in it, and I woke up in that pretty little room and I felt like a Paxville Princess. I prayed for Mr. Franklin, the man who laid the dark blue carpet down, for 3 years...God Bless Mr. Franklin.
There was a door with a window that led to the "formal" living room, and every Christmas they taped the face of Santa Claus inside it....He was always watching me. I would stand in front of the wall heater across from that door to warm up after bathtime...I burnt my baby doll's hair there drying her off too.
Every Christmas, there was a huge tree in the living room, and a stocking for every child, and grandchild, on the mantle. That was a lot, because my mom was one of six...so let's count. Nanny, Papa, Uncle David, Aunt Cherry, Uncle Dan, Momma, Aunt Betsy, Uncle Matt, Uncle Steve, Aunt Terri, Aunt Carolyn, Uncle Johnny, Cousin Jenny, Me, Cousin Stacie, Cousin Davy...there more added later...
Upstairs there was an a-frame bedroom that my cousin Stacie and I shared in middle school. One night, we attempted to sneak out, of course, I was too much of a chicken to climb down the ladder. However, I did manage to fall down the staircase without a broken bone.
Wow, the memories. I could go through the yard too, and recall every bump, bruise, puppy and kitty...I am so full of emotions right now. My heart is so happy to hold memories like this, and sad too, it was where I really called home, and it won't be there next time. But I am so lucky to have had something like this in my life, not everyone does.
On my nannies tombstone is the quote, "Let me live in a house by the side of the road, and be a friend to man" A plaque with this inscription hung on the kitchen wall, and my momma now has it. I remember this house always full of good food and laughter, family and friends. Yes, this was and always will be...Home.
Last week, my mom called me with some interesting news. My childhood home, her childhood home, too, had been demolished to the ground and the rest standing was set on fire. It was done on purpose, and I knew it eventually was going to happen. The house has been uninhabitable for a number of years, but the thought of going home and not seeing it there just saddens me.
It was a little farmhouse that my grandparents added on to. To most people, it would not mean much. It wasn't big, nor was it fancy. But for me, it was home. My mom and I moved around so much, and yet, I lived there repeatedly during my childhood, and then in my early twenties, I lived in it's backyard, I could ALWAYS see it.
On the patio, my Papa had a huge freezer, and a washer/dryer. And JUNK. I remember being little and looking at the dead frozen ducks in the freezer....really, what were they doing there? My cousin Davy threw a kittycat in the dryer one time, and we rescued him quickly. The back door was brown, with a window in it. You walked in and there was a kitchen/den combo.
In that den, I had my very own Christmas tree. I made the star with yellow poster board and dressed up like the Virgin Mary and wrapped my bean bag baby Jennifer up in swaddling towels as the baby Jesus. I have a picture of this.
The kitchen had beautiful wooden cabinets in it, and one night I saw the biggest mouse...RAT in my life on the counter.
There was a long hallway that led to bedrooms and the front of the house. My papa used to stand at one end, and growl at me...."GRRRR...I'm the boogaman...." I would squeal with delight.
The front left bedroom was MINE. My mama painted it a baby blue and moved my canopy bed in it, and I woke up in that pretty little room and I felt like a Paxville Princess. I prayed for Mr. Franklin, the man who laid the dark blue carpet down, for 3 years...God Bless Mr. Franklin.
There was a door with a window that led to the "formal" living room, and every Christmas they taped the face of Santa Claus inside it....He was always watching me. I would stand in front of the wall heater across from that door to warm up after bathtime...I burnt my baby doll's hair there drying her off too.
Every Christmas, there was a huge tree in the living room, and a stocking for every child, and grandchild, on the mantle. That was a lot, because my mom was one of six...so let's count. Nanny, Papa, Uncle David, Aunt Cherry, Uncle Dan, Momma, Aunt Betsy, Uncle Matt, Uncle Steve, Aunt Terri, Aunt Carolyn, Uncle Johnny, Cousin Jenny, Me, Cousin Stacie, Cousin Davy...there more added later...
Upstairs there was an a-frame bedroom that my cousin Stacie and I shared in middle school. One night, we attempted to sneak out, of course, I was too much of a chicken to climb down the ladder. However, I did manage to fall down the staircase without a broken bone.
Wow, the memories. I could go through the yard too, and recall every bump, bruise, puppy and kitty...I am so full of emotions right now. My heart is so happy to hold memories like this, and sad too, it was where I really called home, and it won't be there next time. But I am so lucky to have had something like this in my life, not everyone does.
On my nannies tombstone is the quote, "Let me live in a house by the side of the road, and be a friend to man" A plaque with this inscription hung on the kitchen wall, and my momma now has it. I remember this house always full of good food and laughter, family and friends. Yes, this was and always will be...Home.
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