Whatsoever things are praisworthy

I appreciate:

• My good friend who put stamps and return addresses on 100 envelopes for me. She also sat with me at the free clinic for 3 hours on her day off, and I appreciate that.

• A competent and supportive supervisor who laughs at my jokes and believes in what I do and how I do it.

• Wednesday nights out with the girls.

• Steven’s constant, quiet encouragement to keep writing.

• My good friend and hawaiian-hearted co-worker who has shown me with and without words that she supports what I am about to do.

• My grandma, who sold $250 worth of my homemade fund-raising foot jewelry to all her friends on my behalf, even though she thinks I am going to have to shave my head from lice infestation if I don’t get clubbed over the head and killed first. That is a direct quote.

• My dad, who purchased a peice of foot jewelry, 5 ducks, and pledged my walk-a-thon team because he supports everything I do, no matter what.

• An hour-and-a-half with a clinical supervisor who consistently encourages me to keep trying new things no matter what other people are saying.

• 2 Samuel 14:14

• My new friend who bought 5 ducks and drove them to my work today without even having met me.

• A new friend who researched funding options in the community and forwarded my support letter to his contacts just because he wanted to help.

• Sharon because she ran my mom’s garage sale.

• My mom, for donating the money.

• Denise and Lisa because they make me feel like I still have family in Carmel, and because they are the brightest shining lights I know.

• My neighbor, for inviting me over for dinner. And my other neighbors for not telling on me when I grill on my balcony.

• Being melanoma free!

Mostly I appreciate those of you who have encouraged and supported, who have not run away when I pull out ten-thousand beads or walk-a-thon sheets or duck tickets, who look at my websites and applications and program descriptions, who understand where I’ve been and where I am going and continue to believe I am headed somewhere, not just anywhere.