Positive People Help Turn a Bad Week Good

It's been a rough week. Someone very close to me fears he may be losing his job soon, and one of my very best friends of 20 years is seriously ill. While I'm doing my best to remain strong for them, I'm also struggling to cope with my own insecurities and pain caused by a tragic event that forever changed my life four months ago today. 

Just like the old saying goes, when life hands you lemons, go make lemonade. I learned a long time ago that to get through trying times, it's important to focus on all the good things and positive people in your life.  So, that's what I've been striving to do this past week. My mental anguish knocked me down a bit, but a few people helped bring me back up. 

I've wrote before about some of the amazing people I've met through my client, 

The Salvation Army of Washtenaw County. Another one of those incredible people is Tim Schroeder. I first learned about Tim through an article he wrote in TSA-WC's newsletter. Tim made a very powerful impact on me during our phone calls and e-mail exchanges,  but finally hearing him tell his story in person last week was exactly what I needed to lift my spirits. 

For many years, Tim dealt with numerous addictions that eventually landed him in jail facing three life sentences. He fought hard to leave his previous life behind and is now leading a program at TSA-WC and the Livingston County jail to help others who have been overtaken by addictions. He also recently found love again and remarried his wife who he divorced about 10 years ago. You can read all about Tim here. Tim's inspirational story helped remind me that when you hit rock bottom, the only way to go is up. I soaked up a bit of Tim's happiness the day I listened to his story and used it to get me through this difficult week.

The other uplifting part of my week occurred over wine and sushi. The combination of two of my favorite dining choices was made even better by the people I was sharing it with - my best bud and colleague, Lauren, and Stephanie Casola, someone who I previously only connected with through e-mail and Twitter. Laughing, eating and sharing stories with Lauren and Stephanie helped me forget about the bad things that had been dragging me down all week.

I can always count on Lauren to brighten my mood because she's one of the most positive people I know, and I quickly learned that Stephanie was exactly the same. Stephanie was one of my favorites journalists to work with back when she was with The Observer & Eccentric, but she did a complete 180 and is now working at a local public relations firm. I can't even begin to imagine what it would be like to lose my job, let alone dive head first into a completely new career immediately after losing that job. My coworker, Andrea Westfall (another person who constantly brings a smile to my face), did exactly the same thing. I admire Stephanie and Andrea for being brave enough to try a new career and for succeeding after such a short amount of time in their new roles. Their positive attitudes and upbeat personalities are infectious, even more so during this past week.

A new week lies ahead, and I'm going into it with high expectations. Life throws everyone curve balls now and then, so I know I'm not alone. Whether they realized it or not, the above mentioned people played a big part in helping me to bury my blue mood.

Anyone reading this who has a story to share about someone who recently inspired them or injected them with a much-needed dose of positivity, please share :)

A Very Merry Christmas

Ohhh the holidays! Christmas has come and gone and now it's time to look forward to champagne popping and hugs and kisses to ring in 2009. I hope everyone has had an amazing Christmas/Hanukkah. I look forward to Christmas every year and the feelings of happiness and nostalgia that come attached with the holiday. However, this year was a bit different. For a variety of reasons, I wasn't as excited as I normally am for the holiday season. It didn't seem right to splurge on holiday gifts when so many people in Michigan are suffering. So, I drastically cut down on the amount I spent on gifts this year. After talking with friends and family, I realized I wasn't the only one who felt this way.

I do want to share a story that reignited my Christmas spark and reminded me that happiness during the holidays equates to so much more then spending gobs of money on gifts for people who already have so much. Each year, my PR agency adopts a family for the holidays. For the second consecutive year, we enlisted the help of our client, The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit, to find a local family in need. TSA found us a family from Roseville and those of us who could afford to do so went shopping for the mom and her four children. I decided that I wanted to take part in the gift delivery this year, so me and four of my other colleagues played the role of Santa's Elves and delivered the wrapped gifts to the family's home. I can't explain how happy it made me feel to see the kiddies (who were beyond adorable with their curly, white blonde hair) beaming as we walked through the door with armloads of gifts. Isabelle showed us how she dances like a ballerina, Zach told us how he wants to be an architect when he grows up and the youngest ones, Chloe and Logan, watched us with shy but intriguing eyes as we chatted with their other family members. The kids' mom, Beth, and grandma thanked us up and down for giving their family a very merry Christmas. Beth also gave us a card from the whole family that again thanked us and told us before we decided to help their family, they didn't think the kids would have a Christmas this year. Beth promised to send us photos of the kids opening their presents on Christmas morning.

So even though I took it down a notch this holiday season and didn't go all out with present purchasing or decorating, I can honestly say I had a merry Christmas. I can't wait to see the photos of the kids from Christmas morning. I have read so many stories in the past few weeks about selfless individuals, families and organizations going out of their way to help those less fortunate this holiday season. Maybe Michigan and its residents greatly suffered in 2008, but there are angels among us who offered a helping hand and brought happiness and smiles to many. So here's to 2009 and hoping that more people continue to brighten the lives of others.

Rockin' the Red Kettle

As promised, Ms. Panny and I braved the windy, snowy, blistering cold weather this morning to ring bells and raise money for The Salvation Army. We decided to put our personalities into it by bringing a radio and rockin' out to Christmas tunes. Regardless of the freezing cold snow blowing on us, we were jiving and singing in the spirit of the holidays to help raise money for those in need. People were extremely generous, and we're thankful to everyone who stopped by and donated. Donations are down this year in the red kettles all around Michigan and the country. Volunteers will be collecting at the red kettles through Christmas Eve. So even if you can't afford to donate anything more than the spare change in your pocket, just remember that a little bit truly goes a long way!