Mess or Masterpiece? You GET to Choose!

I woke up and dressed in wacky attire for the creation of today's Wacky Wednesday. With doctor appointments for my 2 youngest before a radio interview at 10, it was an early start to a full morning.
I always make an attempt to talk my kiddos into donning a wacky accessory and joining me in the wackiness if we're going to be together, out and about. One was not thrilled, but willing to participate, the other not so much.

We were on our way to see the very pediatrician who diagnosed Jonnae 7 years ago in April '05. She recently declined the idea of Wacky Wednesdays for her patients. The hospital who treated Jonnae through her 3 year battle has yet to embrace Wacky Wednesday (I've been trying for the last 4years to get them to participate for the benefit of their patients, families and staff.) My own family rejects the idea, so the naysayer in my head decides to tally the score. "If you can't get the people who were closest to Jonnae to embrace the vision and participate, why in the world would you think you can get this to grow nationwide?"

Music in the car begins to lift my spirit a little. We hear the new commercial on WAY-FM promoting Horner Novelties as our Wacky Wednesday supplier and it lifts a bit more. We walk into the doctor's office to the stares and non-changing facial expressions (after 4 years I'm still intrigued as to how you could see this walking wacky woman and not change your countenance in some way) and even though I'm used to this reaction it deflates me a lil.

Into the individual rooms we go; one being seen because of an asthma/allergy flare up, the other for a follow up to being prescribed an anti depressant. This is cause for a major deflate in my spirit. I ache for my youngest daughter and the struggle she's entangled in. I've already watched a daughter's spirit get so beat down from bullying at school that it wasn't until a leukemia diagnosis and a fight to save her life ensued that she was able to shift her perspective to see things differently. The diagnosis and journey that followed changed her. It changed all of us, just not in the same way.

It's the revelation of choice, and what we can do with it, that's propelled me to write, speak, and found a nonprofit to share the tools and gifts that were uncovered in the midst of that journey with Jonnae. Our perspective, choosing gratitude, finding a way to press on...those miraculous tools and the gifts they produced continue to be revealed to me in fresh, undeniable, miraculous ways today. However, I can't force anyone, not even my children, to pick them up and use them. Choice is individually given. It can't be taken away. I don't get to choose someone else's thinking for them.

I dropped my children off at school and headed off to do the radio interview. I had time to run a couple of errands, and as often happens wherever we go, was asked, "How are you?" Well, we all know when that question is asked, the intent is not to open the doorway for one to go on with a myriad of details. However, I'm not one who follows protocol ordinarily, lol, so I proceeded to talk about the rough start I was off to for a Wacky Wednesday (mind you, today I'm wearing a zebra velour cowboy hat topped with a tiara, a red glitter cape, big ginormous mardi gras type beads, a braided blue and white wig, zebra leggings, red baseball socks, black and white chucks, glitter lashes and a milk mustache..oh! and a heart painted on the tip of my nose. Not easy to be so serious in a silly get up like this, yet still possible if you choose to be in that state. Thing about who I've become over the course of the last 7 years, is as natural as it is to breathe, my thoughts and words began shifting to speak positively with encouragement and inspiration. I've become an extremely authentic being, I can't speak one thing and be something else. So the incredible shift happened. I went from being affected by one's depression (which I can't control) to being empowered by my own choice, to let go and let God. By the time I was back in the car, I was feeling more like the inspirational, God powered being I choose to be and have become. Off to the radio station I went.

The radio interview with Joyce Oglesby of "Just Ask Joyce" of Shine 105.9 was just as such an experience tends to be, happy, uplifting and encouraging. There's something that remains constant since the day I've been set on this journey, as I speak the words of truth and inspiration that came to me during the time I needed them most, they lift others and continually lift me. God's amazing that way.

So I left the station thanking God for the turnaround that I had experienced today. Once again completely aware of the power of gratitude and choice to not create on my own, but co-create with God, a masterpiece out of my day...my life. I was compelled to share the thought on my facebook page, "Some spend their whole life making a mess of it. Some eventually turn to God and co-create with Him to turn the mess into a masterpiece. Choice! It's yours. What will you choose? Because fact of the matter is you GET to make the choice as many times as you will!"

The spirit lifting continued. The day had begun as a workout I wasn't sure I had the stamina for, I decided to press on through it, asked God for some assistance and the strength, energy, adrenaline, and joy continued to increase. Introduced to a woman who'd heard of me and wears an "I GET TO' wristband (they can be ordered at www.weGETto.org), with tears in her eyes she spoke my 'love language' to me (Words of Affirmation is my love language. Read "The 5 Love Languages" by Gary Chapman if you'd like to know yours.) She said, "You are such a  wonderful woman of inspiration. The world needs you. Don't stop."

Only moments later, I was conversing with a couple as yet again, more tears welled up in the eyes of one needing encouraged. I could feel the love of God, moving and speaking through me to be the hope and inspiration one of them craved.

I headed out to stop in, unannounced, to a couple of potential sponsors for the June 6th Wack Attack Celebration of Jonnae's 4th Heavenly Birthday. As might be expected the people I had intended to see, weren't there with no appointment having been set. What some might not expect, but I'm never surprised by, were divine appointments just waiting for me to show up.

At the first one, the restaurant where Jonnae had her last dine out experience, the hostesses asked me what Wacky Wednesday was all about. As I proceeded to explain, a young girl with a shaved head, pointed to her uncle who was sitting just behind me. She said her cousin had recently been diagnosed with leukemia. I turned around to ask the gentleman if I'd visited them on a Wacky Wednesday, but recognized him instantly. He's responsible for providing one my all-time favorite Wacky Wednesday memories.

Not a place that really embraces the Wacky Wednesday vision like I dream of growing, the children's hospital is a hard place to inject with smiles and silliness. The patients are game much quicker than the staff. It's definitely a heavy spiritual workout for me. I often find myself exhausted, ready to fall into bed early Wednesday evening, a  result of it. However, this particular morning, I was given quite the energy boost, when I poked my head into a dark room. Before I could even whisper, "It's wacky Wednesday." the patients mother was hitting the leg of a sleeping man in the window seat that's often made into a make shift bed. SHE was the one who whispered it's Wacky Wednesday, and just as if an alarm clock had sounded, the man jumped up to rush out and get some wacky good from the cart to create their Wacky Wednesday. It was AWESOME! And here this man sat, as if he was the one I had an appointment with (hence why I call them divine appointments) We high fived reminiscing about that Wacky Wednesday and I went about my merry way.

On to the next unscheduled stop. I get to travel tomorrow to a speaking engagement. I thought it would be a good idea to stop in and get my oil changed. I was hardly out of the car, when I man I didn't recognize (we'd not met before) approached my car and said, "I need to ask you something." Ofcourse, I expected the question was going to be about my attire, but was pleasantly surprised when he said, "I've been trying to buy your book and the bookstores I've checked don't carry it." (it too is available at www.weGETto.org) I proceeded to tell him I'd tried to get it in bookstores, but had a traveling bookstore in my car. He was so happy to acquire a signed copy. Was such a blessing to witness that excitement in him and be a small part of what's responsible for it. Love the surprise party God continually throws for us if we allow Him to host one for us.

It's not always evident, or easy to see, He's with us; hosting surprise parties, scheduling divine appointments, co creating to produce masterpieces of our messes, but I assure you He is. I have NO DOUBT. It gets easier to continue the leap in faith, when a day such as today, one that began with a heavy, deflated, discouraged spirit turns into an undeniably, abundantly blessed, incredible day.

Now I get to return home with a strengthened, lifted, encouraged spirit to somehow be an example to my discouraged daughter when she gets home from practice. An example of what's possible when we not only ask God, but F.R.O.G. (fully rely on God) to be our strength, our light and our hope. May you too, whomever you are, whatever you're going through, be encouraged to press on, F.R.O.G and co-create a masterpiece out of what you feared was a mess. Anything is possible with God!