I don’t normally write much in this blog that is personal.  But, recently, I have been challenged to write about relationships.  I have a son, a daughter, a stepdaughter, and a grandson, all of whom I am very proud.  But today, I want to talk to you about just one of my children,  my daughter.  I can still remember the day we brought her home from the hospital.  She had the most beautiful big eyes I had ever seen.  She was a great baby, very rarely cried with the exception of one little quirk. She hated shoes.  From the time she was a month old, she would scream at the top of her lungs if we tried to put shoes oh her.  So, we compromised, as all parents do, we let her wear socks.  All was well with her world.

Fourteen years later,  I would have given her all the socks in the world if that would have fixed what had happened to her world.  She was a good kid, never on drugs, very stubborn, but otherwise, no major problems..   Above all, she was delightful to be around.  She had the funniest way of saying things with her dead pan face that would just crack us all up.   She was blessed with a few good friends, who still remain her friends today.

I hate to use the words, “on that fateful day”, but it was a life changing, horrible day for us all.  She had been sitting at a desk doing her homework, like any fourteen year old would do on a school night, and I asked her, then told her to do something.  I had been moving my studio and there were empty boxes everywhere.  There was a young man, whom I had hired to  help with the move as my son had gone off to college, and the two kids had been eyeing each other with cute little grins all evening.  His job was to take out the empty boxes.  It was getting late, the next day was a school day, and we were all tired.  So I told her to go help him so that we could leave.  At first, she begged off, saying she had homework to do, then she finally gave in and grudgingly went to help him load the empty boxes in the back of the pickup truck that I had.  Being kids, and only wanting to make one trip to the end of the alley in the back, they filled up that truck to the brim.  By the time they left to go that half block, my daughter was sitting on the tailgate of the pickup truck to help hold those boxes.

The driver was unfamiliar with the truck and he didn’t know the gas pedal stuck a tiny bit, so when he took off,, he gunned the engine a little, maybe to show off, as teenage boys are known to do, maybe it just got stuck.  Who knows these things?  Only the one who was there in that truck.  That little gunning of the engine was all it took.   She wasn’t ready and when he took off, she slipped off the edge of the tailgate, hit the base of her skull, flew up in the air and landed on her head on the concrete.

When he came running in to tell me that she was hurt, I honestly thought he was teasing, as they had been all day, then I saw the look on his face and I started running.  She was on the ground trying to stand up.  I took her face in my hands before I realized that the blood was rhythmically pumping out of her ear, taking her life with each beat.  I knew then she was in trouble.  I also knew she would not make it if we waited on an ambulance.  I put her in that truck and drove like an insane mother to get her to the hospital in time.  As fate would have it, we happened to be only a half mile from one of the best trauma centers in that part of the country.  As I poured her into the hands of the nurses and saw the looks on their faces, once again, I knew she was very badly hurt.

Two hours later, the chaplain of the hospital came to me and said, so gently, “Why don’t  you call your Dad and let him be here with you?”.  My answer was to tell  him that I didn’t want to bother him until I had something to tell him.  He looked me in the eye and said, “You have something to tell him, call him now.  She doesn’t have much time left.”  My heart stopped.  I know it didn’t beat for a long time.  This was my baby, the little sister my son had gotten down on his knees for seven years and said, “Please God, bring me a little brother or sister.”  She was already my miracle child, adopted at birth after only knowing she was alive for two days.  How could this be happening?

My Dad, also a Chaplain at that same hospital, came when I called.   I didn’t lose it until he walked in the door.   At that point, a different sort of relationship took place.  I went from being the strong, I will fix everything mother bear, to the child who just wanted her Daddy to fix it now.  And he did.

I don’t know to this day how it happened, but he started walking the circle around the nurses desks, that made up the trauma center.  It was no small circle, but quite long, and I didn’t realize what he was doing for a long time.  I just thought he was upset and needed to walk.

He was praying.

He walked that circle ceaselessly for more hours than I could count.  He never stopped and his lips never stopped moving.  The doctors had already told us that she wouldn’t live until morning.  But, you know, that sun peaked over the edge of the sunrise, and started climbing high into the sky, and she was still with us.  I won’t say she was in good shape, but she was alive, had survived the night, with some very extreme pain and fear of the unknown.  I didn’t leave the hospital.  It was a beautiful hospital and I slept on the floor outside the door of the intensive care, just to be near her.  They let me see her every other hour, but she did not know I was there, and when she did open her eyes, she did not know I was her mother.

She lived, or I wouldn’t be writing this story.  Shortly after that accident, we went out for a drive on a country road and stopped at a beautiful little roadside stop.  The trees were waving in the wind, and there was a stream at the base of the little patch of grass.  As she walked away from me wearing that coat, it began to snow.  And as it snowed, I saw her come back to me.  She put her arms out to catch it and twirled around in a circle with glee.  She was not only alive, she was happy.  I sat on the tailgate of that same truck and painted this painting of her.

You can see in the way she is standing that she is happy.   It was a defining moment in our lives and our relationship.   She had always been a “Mama’s” girl, but at that point we both knew it.  We knew that we were bonded for life and her life was only beginning.  I was happy and sad, and that painting has tears on it.  Her live was changed irrevocably that day she flew off that truck, and so was mine.

I’ve never told this story publicly before, but it is time..  My daughter is grown now, lives a free life that she enjoys.  She still has problems from the accident and always will, but she is still the most joyous person to be around.  She has a sense of humor that can turn every one in the room into peals of laughter.  She has a determination to live a normal life that would make most Generals look like babies.  She is a survivor and I am so proud  of her.

She is My Girl.

She’s My Girl

© g.lynne 2010

All of us have people that we are involved with and sometimes we can sense that something is not right in their life. We might as the question, “can I help”? However I would suggest that before we can help we need to be able to empathize with the person that you are trying to help. Empathy is t

This is an excellent article about life.  We should all take it to heart.

You probably don’t clean your computer screen very often
and it is really hard to do the inside, so here is my present to you.

Why Democracy Functions Less Effectively With Ignorance…

_______________
AP Poll: Gov’t health plan divides public
By ERICA WERNER, Associated Press Writer Erica Werner, Associated Press Writer
Wed Nov 18, 6:12 am ET

WASHINGTON – Tell Americans that letting the government sell insurance in competition with private industry would be cheaper for them, and a majority is in favor.

Tell them the government would be making decisions about what medical care they could get, and support sinks.

The findings from an Associated Press poll come as lawmakers struggle to advance President Barack Obama’s signature health care overhaul, with the final shape of any government insurance plan very much in doubt. The issue has been the biggest flash point in the health care debate, and the poll results underscore that how it is defined can make a big difference in the public’s response.

Politicians know that. It’s why when Republicans talk about letting the government sell health coverage in competition with private carriers, they cast it as a government takeover that would destroy private industry. Democrats talk about choice, competition and “keeping health insurance companies honest.”

The AP poll, conducted by Stanford University with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, suggests that when such messages are heard, they have an effect.

Half of the 1,500 participants in the AP poll were told that a government insurance plan “would be less expensive than other insurance plans, because the government would not need to make a profit the way businesses do and because the government is able to negotiate lower prices with doctors and hospitals than insurance companies can.”

Fifty-two percent said they favored such a plan, while 35 percent were opposed and 12 percent neither favored nor opposed it.

“I fundamentally feel that the private insurance industry basically holds all the market power” and could use some competition from a nonprofit alternative, said Robert Baulch, 58, of North Chatham, Mass.

The goal is “covering a lot of folks that just can’t get coverage and reducing the cost overall,” he said.

The other half of the people polled were told the government plan would be less expensive, but they were also told that “the government would run the insurance plan and decide which medical care would be paid for and how much would be paid, like insurance companies do.”

That version of the question found 44 percent in support and 38 percent opposed, while 15 percent neither favored nor opposed the idea.

“They would decide which medical care would be paid for,” said Jeff Anderson, 43, of Burlingame, Calif. “If you have a tumor growing inside you that needs to be removed or you’re going to die, and they decide, well, we don’t cover cancer or we don’t cover other types of diseases — you know, that’s just wrong.”

So while both questions elicited more supporters than opponents for a public insurance plan — bearing out the results of past polling that has shown the public generally supportive — the plan commanded majority support only when cast in positive terms that emphasized benefits to consumers over government control.

The poll also sought to elicit views of the government insurance plan design under consideration by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., as he finalizes a health care bill to bring to the Senate floor.

Legislation passed by the House this month included a public plan available nationally for small businesses and, mostly, self-employed people. Under Reid’s version, individual states would be able to opt out of the public plan.

Poll participants were asked whether government insurance should be available to all, or whether state governments should be able to decide not to offer it. Seventy percent favored making it available nationally while 25 percent said state governments should be able to decide.

Overall, the poll found the public split on Congress’ drive to enact sweeping legislation extending coverage to tens of millions of uninsured Americans. Opinion was also evenly divided on Obama’s handling of the matter, and participants expressed concerns and confusion about costs and various other aspects of the issue.

Despite the controversy surrounding the public plan, it would affect a small number of people. A Congressional Budget Office analysis of the House bill estimated that about 6 million people would sign up for the public option in 2019, once it was fully phased in. That represents about 2 percent of Americans under age 65. (Older people are covered through Medicare.)

The overwhelming majority of the population would remain in private health insurance plans sponsored by employers. Others, mainly low-income people, would be covered through an expanded Medicaid program.

The budget office also said that “a less healthy pool of enrollees” would probably be attracted to the public option, drawn by the prospect of looser rules on access to specialists and medical services. As a result, premiums in the public plan would actually be higher than the average for private plans, according to the budget office.

In the AP-GfK poll, the differently worded questions on the public plan each had a sampling error margin of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points. The poll interviewed 1,502 people from Oct. 29-Nov. 8 with an overall sampling error margin of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.

The interviews were conducted by GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media. Stanford University’s participation in the project was made possible by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

___

AP Polling Director Trevor Tompson and Associated Press writers Ann Sanner and Natasha Metzler contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2009 Yahoo! Inc

John was in the fertilized egg business.
He had several hundred young layers (hens), called ‘pullets,’
and ten roosters to fertilize the eggs.
 
He kept records, and any rooster not performing
went into the soup pot and was replaced.
      
This took a lot of time,  so he bought some tiny bells
and attached them to his roosters.
      
Each bell had a different tone,  so he could tell from a distance,
which rooster was performing.
      
Now, he could sit on the porch And fill out an efficiency report
by just listening to the bells.
     
John’s favorite rooster, old Butch,  was a very fine specimen,
but this morning he noticed old Butch’s bell hadn’t rung at all!
     
When he went to investigate, he saw the other roosters were busy chasing pullets,  
bells-a-ringing, but the pullets, hearing the roosters coming, could run for cover.
      
To John’s amazement, old Butch had his bell in his beak, so it couldn’t ring.
     
He’d sneak up on a pullet, do his job and walk on to the next one.
John was so proud of old Butch,  he entered him in the Renfrew County Fair
and he became an overnight sensation among the judges.
      
The result was the judges not only awarded old Butch the No Bell Piece Prize
but they also awarded him the Pulletsurprise as well.
        Clearly old Butch was a politician in the making.
       Who else but a politician could figure out
how to win two of the most highly coveted awards
on our planet by being the best at sneaking up on the populace
and screwing them when they weren’t paying attention.
       
Vote carefully this year, the bells are not always audible.

 
  
“Since the general civilization of mankind, I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people
by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpation.”
~~ President James Madison ~~
‘IN GOD WE TRUST!!!’

-

‘…INBEAT GLOBAL MOVEMENT…’
THANKS AND WELCOME TO INTERNATIONAL BEAT ( ‘…INBEAT…’ ) !!!
( www.myspace.com/1inbeat1 )
+ ‘…When people are dancing and dining together, they are not fighting against each other…’
Think of ‘…INBEAT…’(International Beat) (www.myspace.com/1inbeat1) as being a Global Community that belongs to all of its Members… Just like an Internet based United Nations. It will be used as a mechanism for addressing some of the present and future Global Challenges through the timely introduction of ‘Precisioned Initiatives’ that the Community can execute. Because of the ‘precisioned’ attributes of the ‘Envisioned Initiatives’, they would invariably be less costly and more effective than prevailing “programs”. Why, you may ask? : Simply because the Initiatives will be coming from their ‘…Source Of Origin…’.
A Number of Initiatives have been started that people could work on collectively. One of them was espoused by Ms. Jah Jah ( www.myspace.com/mcjahjah ) in 2008. She suggested doing a Community Album of Songs on saving trees. This has since given impetus for the start of the INBEAT GLOBAL SONGS INITIATIVE ( www.myspace.com/inbeatsongs ), which serves as a one-stop-shop for Songs’ Writing/Music Production. One caveat though: Songs that debase women and ethnicities shall not be tolerated within ‘…INBEAT…’(International Beat). In this regard, people should check out Ms. Meru’s ( www.myspace.com/merumatu ) song “…Don’t Talk About Mi Mama…”, which is cautionary. Other ‘…Initiatives…’ include, but not limited to, Hemispheric Health and Wellness( www.myspace.com/inbeathealth ), Travel and Lodging(work in progress), INBEAT Global Cookbook ( www.myspace.com/inbeatcookbooks ), INBEAT Global Poetry Initiative(
www.myspace.com/inbeatpoetry
), and The INBEAT Global Life Journey Book Initiative(www.myspace.com/inbeatlife), and The INBEAT Help-Line Initiative for INBEAT Members ( www.myspace.com/inbeathelp ). People are encouraged to check these INBEAT Communities. Just about all the Communities have income-earning mechanisms/empowerment for Members. Furthermore, voice has been given to the ‘…INBEAT GLOBAL MOVEMENT…’ by way of the INBEAT BLOGTALK RADIO ( http://www.blogtalkradio.com/INTERNATIONAL-BEAT- ) that was set up through the dedicated efforts of Ms. Kat Solomon(inbeatpoetry@myspce.com).
In effect, the INBEAT Communities are taking a departure from the typical social networks’ agenda that leave a lot to be desired in some cases. The Communities aspire to actually accomplish concrete objectives with its Membership.
Let me introduce myself:
My name is E.N. and my background is in Architecture, Urban and Regional Strategic Planning.

Cheers and stay strong!
E.N. September 26, 2009 ( 1inbeat1@myspace.com )

Obama calls for ‘honest debate’ on health care
By DARLENE SUPERVILLE, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is challenging his critics on a national health care overhaul, accusing them of making “phony claims” about the legislation.

“This is an issue of vital concern to every American, and I’m glad that so many are engaged,” Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio and Internet address.

“But it also should be an honest debate, not one dominated by willful misrepresentations and outright distortions, spread by the very folks who would benefit the most by keeping things exactly as they are.”

Obama said illegal immigrants would not be part of the health care overhaul, taxpayers would not be mandated to fund abortions and he does not intend a government takeover of health care — all claims that critics have made at
contentious town hall-style meetings with members of Congress.

He also took a swipe at “death panels,” an idea former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin introduced on her Facebook page.

“As every credible person who has looked into it has said, there are no so-called death panels — an offensive notion to me and to the American people,” Obama said. “These are phony claims meant to divide us.”

Obama’s liberal base was angered this past week after he seemed to suggest he would be fine with a plan that lacked a government-run health insurance option.

“This is one idea among many to provide more competition and choice, especially in the many places around the country where just one insurer thoroughly dominates the marketplace,” Obama said. “Let me repeat: It would be just an option; those who prefer their private insurer would be under no obligation to shift to a public plan.”

In their weekly address, Republicans accused Obama of
misrepresenting his proposal.

“As opposition to the Democrats’ government-run health plan is mounting, the president has said he’d like to stamp out some of the disinformation floating around out there,” said Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga. “The problem is the president, himself, plays fast and loose with the facts.”

Price said that the whole plan should be scrapped and lawmakers should start over with a plan that makes sure patients — not Washington or insurance providers — are the top priority.

“We all know that when the government is setting the rules and is backed by tax dollars, it will destroy, not compete with, the private sector,” said Price, a physician. “The reality is, whether or not you get to keep your plan, or your doctor, is very much in question under the president’s proposal.”

In God We Trust:

A Holy man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said,
‘Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.’

The Lord led the holy man to two doors.

He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in.

In the middle of the room was a large round table..
In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew,
which smelled delicious and made the holy man’s mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly.
They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long
handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to
reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful.
But because the handle was longer than their arms,
they could not get the spoons back into their mouths.
The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering.
The Lord said, ‘You have seen Hell. They went to the next room and
opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one.
There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made
the holy man’s mouth water.
The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here
the people were well nourished and plump,   laughing and talking.
The holy man said, ‘I don’t understand..
‘It is simple,’ said the Lord. ‘It requires but one skill.
You see, they have learned to feed each other.
The greedy think only of themselves.’
When Jesus died on the cross, he was thinking of you.
Its estimated 93% won’t forward this.

If you are one of the 7% who will, forward this with the title ’7%’ .

I’m in the 7%

Remember that

I will always share my  spoon with you