My week wasn't that bad.......

I've been busy.  From bake sales to school to something else I can't remember to out of town work and back again, and I cannot wait to go back to school to rest.                                                                                     With the recent tragedy at the Connecticut  school, school should be the last place I would want to spend my time. 

Most will take their confusion of this tragedy to church and try to make some sense out of it, and it's impossible to make sense of it, whether in or out of church.  To those flocking in the church I would surmise they are looking for answers, for others, to be able to lay those burdens at HIS feet. 

 This was evil.  Call it what you will but it was evil. My view of mental illness in these cases,( it's a way I can process it and make some sense out of it), is a total mind control from Satan himself.  No sane person would do these heinous things. 

This was my view, daily, from inside the school cafeteria, with my job.

 This had been a trying week for me, but my week was nothing and  never never in my wildest imagination would I have ever imagined anything  could occur like this. 
I'm so sad for the families of the slain, as well as for the brother of the shooter who also has to endure the burden of what his brother did,as well as the loss of his mother. How do you get over that?

I read from someone on FB, who said, " those children should be concerned with Santa Claus and the unwrapped presents under the tree".                 Now we mourn their presence.
For those who have survived this atrocity they will have to endure the pain and  PTSD.  

Some of us have bad days and sometimes we have nightmares.  This Friday was a nightmare beyond any street.  Just like all the other nightmares that occur on any given day whether it is guns, poison, knives, or even brain washing to the point of Kool-Aid.  It's mental illness at its worse.

  Guns? What about a psych questionnaire with each gun purchase,  I'm not  sure but we could get real creative and come up with something that works if we put our heads together. If you laugh at this then consider the restraining order.  Personally I think we have more of a chance with the previous idea.  It's not just about guns it's bigger than that, but rest assured this was the ammunition needed to fuel the fire for the general media to create the buzz in the air in Washington to stop our right to bear arms.  And I just heard about Soledad on CNN  giving everyone her opinion on air when it should be straight broadcasting.  Dadgum media. They obviously forget they could just as well have their free speech revoked too. 

 Julian Lennon commented on "doing something about guns," but the man who killed his dad was mentally ill too. What if something had been done then-- for/too/about the mentally ill.   Too many times mentally ill people are turned out on the street instead of dealing with the problem.  The burdens I've heard about from the families who have to deal with their mentally ill who are beyond help, are worn out because they have no place to turn.  They know something needs to be done and NO ONE IS LISTENING. Their mentally ill eventually becomes ours, if we're unlucky enough. It did on Friday.

  Let's keep this real, the reality of slain children and adults in an elementary school is as real as it gets, created by a mentally unstable young man.  

There is one place you can turn for help, it is called NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness.  Their resources are plenty.

Psalm 4:1
Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: you have enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.

 

NO KID HUNGRY

NO KID HUNGRY...

ALL THOSE ITEMS YOU SEE  ARE EVENTS OF DIFFERENT FUNDRAISERS, DONATING TO THE SAME CAUSE.   THERE IS A CHOICE IN HOW YOU GIVE.. THE RESULT IS UP TO YOU.

...is a National organization, because it's a national problem and it involves our children/kids/little ones/little adults in short clothing, etc......

You should get the picture.  This NO KID HUNGRY is focusing on OUR kids here in AMERICA.

We know there are kids in other countries without food, we seem to see it and hear it even more so. And this isn't to diminish the needs of those children. We've heard about those children at our own dinner tables, especially if we didn't eat those green beans sitting in front of us.  Generally, what we didn't hear about was the starving kids here in America.  Not just a few of them,  but lots of them.   Maybe there are kids in your own neighborhood who have gone to bed hungry.  This isn't something saved for "certain" neighborhoods, this is a widespread epidemic.  

Especially so due to the economy.

SOME OF THE ORGANIZATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS CAUSE WILL MATCH YOUR DONATIONS. LIKE THE SUGAR COMPANIES, ETC.

NEXT MONTH I'M HOLDING "THE GREAT AMERICAN BAKE SALE" IN MY COMMUNITY, TO HELP RAISE MONEY FOR THIS WORTHWHILE CAUSE. 

 I'LL CHECK BACK LATER AND UPDATE WITH PHOTOS AND LET YOU KNOW HOW IT WENT.

  IN THE MEANTIME.......visit their website, see how you can help, and see how this cause benefits your own community.

Meanwhile, Take the Pledge 

Share our Strength The Great American Bake Sale

Let's help end childhood hunger in the USA.

I decided to take on the task of holding a bake sale to raise money for the title cause, and to start now due to the overwhelming amount of tasks that lie ahead  in the months to come. 

I know it's a little odd that I'm adding this bit of info after the last post.  But this is way different.
 I'm have no plans of  baking ,there are others ready willing and able.
I know this guy, who has a big heart for certain causes and he's no novice when it comes to fundraising.  He was nominated for the Jefferson Award,  a few years back.   That's a very big deal, but he's very low key kind of guy when he does help.   I told him what I was planning to do and thankfully, it didn't take any convincing.  It was  the kids, not me.  I'm very okay with that, that's why I'm doing it too.  I'm very happy to say Gary Lambert Salon,   is helping with this cause. 

He was one of the first to join a pilot program for cancer patients called “Look Good, Feel Better.” More than two decades later, he’s still donating products and services to women devastated not only by the way cancer makes them feel, but also how it makes them look. He was awarded the prestigious Jefferson Award for his efforts.     -original article written by Tom Dyer (full article)

 Here's the facts or statistics of hunger here in America.

It's one thing to hear about raising money, it's another to understand, go to this link.

If you're interested in making a donation, ( link to site below) then all I can say is Thank you So Much. 
 The actual day of the bake sale hasn't been determined as of yet, although we do know the month,  and it will be held  in December.  That's the beauty of this cause, you can go online and donate anytime, you don't really have to be there or consume calories.

 The website  available for the cause accommodates those, like myself, willing to  help by providing you with your own web page and all kinds of other neat stuff to make it easier to focus on the bake sale and keep everything straight.    Isn't that great?

Here's the link ( my page)  for Share our Strength The Great American Bake Sale, - The Land of Sweets.
Just know this.  You never know who is without food.  It could be your neighbor, the kid that sits next your yours in school or who you pass on  the street.
 It's great to help those all over the world, but this time we get to help those here in America.  This is  just as huge.

If you're interested in helping to end childhood hunger in America,  at any time of year it's an easy process to sign up. 
What better way to meet new people, make money for a great cause, and to have a great excuse to buy chocolate. 
Smile.

Cuteness at it's Peak

Olan Mills couldn't have arranged such cuteness on a bet and kids do the darnedest things.  The best is when  busy lives stop for even five minutes out of the day to create a memory. 

The children are grown, and families have moved away,  for me this will always remain a dear memory
of an outing on a cool autumn day.

In Memory of Gretchen Goodwin 
**June 1977-November 2003**