Tuesday, December 30, 2008

What does this season mean to you?

We are about to end a tough, but historic year. We saw a woman running for president and vice president. We have seen our first African American president. This has been a year of ups and down. We are hearing everyone tell us the sky is falling and there is nothing we can do but hide.

I don't want to believe that. Those that know me, know that my favorite movie is "The Wizard of Oz." The first reason is because my husband asked me to marry him during the movie. But there is another reason. It is because, above all, this movie is about hope. Hope that when it is all said and done, you can still be safe, you can still get home.

But then I think, what about those that do not have a home? What about those that are losing their home, their job, or a loved one?

I remember a time, when I was going through a very rough time in my life. During that time, there was a song, "Don't Worry - Be Happy". I truly did believe that if I heard that song, or someone tell me that one more time I was going to jump off a bridge!

Some people think that hope is the same is not having worry. I wholeheartidly disagree! I think that hope is the thing that gets us up out of bed in the morning on the days when we really could just lay there.

We can always have hope. When you reach out to someone who has lost their home, their money or anything else. Tell them that you have hope for them. You will carry that beacon for them that they may not be able to see. Then, when the time comes and they are ready to carry that light again, give it back, brighter and stronger than before.

We may not always be able to give money, time, or even love. But the one thing we can offer everyone, our friends, our foes, even our enemies, is hope.

Monday, November 3, 2008

What type of footprint do you leave?

With Gray Lady Riders, we want to leave our own footprints in the world, but what we leave as individuals? Not just in the world, but in the lives of others? Is our footprint like the subtle surf where little is disturbed, but nothing is changed? Is it like a steady wave, leaving the occasional treasure, helping to clean up, but also taking things away? Or are we like a hurricane where when we blow in we leave a path of destruction that while memorable, is scarring and hurtful.

Unfortunately, I think I do it all. I would like to think that I just leave the positive things, but I know that I do not. The only thing that I can hope, is that when I blow in like a hurricane - it is rare; However, unlike a hurricane, I hope that my words and actions will not scar the landscape of my relationships so that nothing can repair them.

Gray Lady Riders gives us the opportunity to make a difference. However, every day we must choose what we are going to be: a wake, a wave or a storm.

Monday, October 13, 2008

How do you define appreciation?

One of my (our) biggest dilemma is trying to identify children that not only want our supplies, but those that genuinely need and appreciate it.

When I was in Jamaica, I was told that children there do not hoard. If a child has a pencil and his classmate does not - he (or she) will cut it in half so that both children will have a pencil.

How to you make that leap from a third world country to that of a school in an inner-city or in an area of abject poverty? We in the US are fortunate enough to not know of children that go to school without shoes, clothes or the basic needs (or at least I do not). How do we choose the truly needy vs the wanting?

How do we find the same kind of need in the US? I would love some ideas.

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Our changing lives

I am in the process of trying to determine if this is a good idea or not. As such, I poll just about anyone I can that is close to my age or older. When asking about the idea and goals of GLR, I met a woman who said, "I'm not interested." When I asked why, she simply said "I am in the process of redefining myself, helping my mother thought chemo, cancer and life. I just lost my father and now this. Just when we think our job is easing up because our children are grown, I find myself taking care of my parents."

I thought about this. We are known as so many different things. The Baby Boomers, The Sandwich Generation.. what else? It seems unfair that we have to deal with both ends of the candle and are expected to do it. Is there a way for GLR to somehow incorporate the Sandwiches along with the children?

What makes a cause, or charity good? How do you know if what you are choosing will impact the right people? How do you define "good"?

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Gray Lady Riders - The Beginning

Wow, we are actually doing it - we are actually going to make a difference in the world. It's funny, when you decide that you finally want to change the world, you have a vision of grandiose actions. The truth is, it starts here. Well, technically, it started in May, when I walked into building in Jamaica with 50 children between the ages of 3 to 6 with not nearly enough backpacks or paper, but just enough pencils to give each child their own. There was not any electricity, no running water, none of the amenities that our kids have when they go to school. But they had such pride! It was there I learned how easy it was to leave a footprint in the world. That day Gray Lady Riders was born.

Why Gray Lady Riders? Why now? The first is easy - I turn 50 this year. My hair may not be gray yet, but my life is now at the stage where I should be. Plus, I ride a motorcycle. So it was easy to make the name. Why now? Well, that one is a bit harder. I feel restlessness in my life, and when speaking with other women close to my age, I realized that I was not alone. I now know that when I look into the future, that there is a end. Rather than focus on that final destination, I have decided to focus on the journey of life. I want to ride to the end, full of life and leave a trail of smiles, hope and dreams as much and often as I can.

So there you have it. Gray Lady Riders. We are looking for women who want to ride the journey of life and make it better for others in the world at the same time. Perhaps you ride a motorcycle, perhaps not, but however you choose to move your body through life, we want to be able change that journey in your soul . Help us to help others and in doing so, you too may find an answer to the restlessness that moves us all.