May 2013 – We Only Get One Chance

A ROSE

The rose is known for it’s beauty and energy. It is a symbol for “love and beauty” and different colors mean different things. I remember growing up, when I got a rose that was white, it meant something similar to the “like” button on Facebook, yellow meant “friendship” and red meant “love”. When roses were delivered in high school from someone, the color truly was significant…but the bottom line was everyone loves roses.

This evening I was having wine and a bite to eat with a friend, and since it was Mother’s Day, the restaurant was giving red roses out to all the females…basically making the assumption that they were mothers.

One of the servers at the restaurant taps me on the shoulder and says “Ma’am, would you like a rose?” Instantly, and based on my assumption that “roses are for mothers only” I said “No thank you. I don’t deserve one. I am not a mom.”

WOAH!!! HOLD YOUR HORSES!!!! …now all of a sudden I have made an assumption that in order to “deserve” a rose, to be “worthy” of receiving a rose from a random restaurant server, I must have birthed a child into this world or somehow married into a step-mother role.

When absolutely ridiculous statements like that fall out of my mouth, a HUGE red flag goes up indicating it is a good time for me to take a step back and evaluate where on Earth it came from.

The friend I was sitting with was just the perfect person to have this conversation with as he reminded me that I am worthy of a rose…and so much more. “You are like a palm tree in the North Pole…you give hope and you give life and put a smile on people’s faces”. “Leaders and movers in the world were never placed on a yacht in the Bahamas, they were always where hungry and thirsty souls are.” and “Bloom where you are planted.”

Thank you my dear friend.

So I took the rose and I placed it on my purse and it became the center of conversation and a focal point for the rest of the evening.

Have you looked at a rose lately? If you sit and are really present with a rose and you take the time to check out the intricacies of it’s structure…it is truly magnificent, a beautiful natural work of art. As I brought the rose up to my nose for a smell, I was taken back by the beauty of the layers and layers of pedals that created this amazing thing…and to think all of that came from a very small rosebud is absolutely astounding.

In its infant stages, all of that gorgeous structure was already planned and mapped out. A rosebud holds so much potential that is only expressed if it is nurtured and given what is necessary for growth. …and the same holds true for each one of us. There is such a magnificent, grand plan that will unfold in perfect timing and perfect beautiful structure if it is nurtured and given what is necessary for growth. And if you look around, you will find this is also true for everything around you.

So let the beauty of a rose remind you of your inborn, INNATE potential to be magnificent and grand and beautiful and loved. When you walk by the floral department in your local grocery, take a second glance at the beauty that is the rose in all of its gorgeous shades. But do more than that…pick one out of the group, buy it, take it home, put it in water and place it by your kitchen sink. Let it be your early morning reminder, your lunchtime reminder and your after dinner reminder of the beautiful potential that is you. Nurture that potential and give yourself what is necessary to grow…and then get busy blooming where you are planted.

MOMS

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there reading this. There are a few moms that I hang out with on a regular basis and of course one that is extra special to me…my own Mom.

I do not have children of my own at this point, and when I really think about it, I do not see how children fit into a life like mine…but my understanding is you just make it happen. I can’t imagine one child, much less four like my Mom had. Bless her for doing an amazing job with all of us and in retrospect, the simple fact that my brothers didn’t kill themselves or one another is absolutely a miracle in and of itself.

I could write on and on about the incredible human being that my Mom is however this picture sums it all up the very best and touched my soul at such a deep level I instantly burst into tears…

LET THE SUN SHINE IN

As I walk around enjoying an outdoor music festival today, I realize how much the sun effects people, especially in this part of the country. We had a long, cold winter and it is now time to let the sun shine in!!!

It is a perfect, beautiful day to spend time outside listening to music. The Waterhill Music Festival is a sweet little festival where all kinds of bands and artists perform from the front porches of homes within a neighborhood as a whole slew of people walk the streets. People are happy. They have shed layers of clothing in exchange for sunglasses and smiles and the energy is amazing.

I am fortunate to spend the afternoon with a few of my most favorite gals and we catch each other up on life as we lay in the grass listing to live music.

We dance around a may pole, do lots of people-watching and enjoy a little bit of dancing ourselves.

Last summer I got a convertible…well sort of a convertible. I have a Jeep Wrangler and it is really simple to removed the tops directly over the front seats and let the sun shine in while driving. The tops have been off for about three days already and the next few look sunny and 70s as well…which automatically means that there is going to be a super happy undertone to everything that happens this week! I had no idea about the joy a convertible brings but am slowly realizing that there are some really sweet moments created by mixing loud music, sunshine, a breeze and a long country road.

I took the long way to get to Ann Arbor today driving all back country roads. What would normally take forty minutes to drive on the expressway, took almost two hours…but the time was absolutely blissful. Sometimes there isn’t much that is better than taking the long way just for the sake of taking a long drive.

Spring is a happy time, a time for growth and renewal, and it is palpable in the people that I have been hanging around…those that I know and so many strangers that I shared the sidewalk with today at the music festival. It is a bustling evening here in Ann Arbor, definitely a great sign of spring and It is absolutely time to let the sun shine in to your life!!!

MY REASON

There are so many reasons why I love being a chiropractor. This is one of my reasons and a testimonial that I gather my strength from to press on…no matter what! It ran across my desk the other day and I wanted to share it with you.

“Our son Benjamin was born on July of 2004. His traumatic birth resulted in lack of oxygen to his brain and he suffered microcephaly and severe cerebral palsy. This condition would cause him severe muscle tightness and spasms which were uncontrollable.

Many medications were available to us to give Benjamin relief from the tightness in his muscles. But we didn’t want him to be constantly lethargic and sleepy. We were told his time would be limited so we looked for the best alternatives to medication so he could enjoy his life to the fullest.

In our search for alternative methods to keep our Benjamin comfortable, Dr. Erica Peabody was recommended for chiropractic care. Her warm personality and gentle approach impressed us immensely. From the first adjustment Benjamin was able to sleep better and some of the muscle tightness lessened. His constant arching (a result of his cerebral palsy) also lessened. When he was being adjusted he almost always had a smile on his face. He couldn’t speak but we knew when he was smiling that life was pretty good for him.

So we began our weekly visits to Dr. Peabody. We traveled an hour and a half each way to see her. We always looked forward to our visits each Wednesday because we knew they would provide Benjamin much needed relief and he would almost always sleep the remainder of the day because he was finally able to relax. Our only obstacle was that we were so far away that we could only make one visit a week.

Benjamin passed away on October 7, 2008, at the age of 4, as a result of his medical condition. We were so thankful that we were able to have Dr. Peabody in his life, if only for a short time. She gave him the care and relief from his condition that the medical community could only provide with medication.

Handicapped children cannot always tell us how they feel. For Benjamin, his inability to speak or tell us how he was feeling was definitely a concern to us. When we chose chiropractic, his change in his overall condition and personality (to a much happier child) let us know we definitely made the right choice.

Dr. Erica Peabody’s care for Benjamin has made a very positive influence in Benjamin’s life as well as in the life of our family. Because of Erica’s care for Benjamin, our 20 year old son has decided to follow in her footsteps, and is now attending Life University to become a chiropractor so he can help children such as Benjamin to live a happier, more comfortable life.

When we were leaving the hospital on the day of Benjamin’s passing, our doctor comforted us by saying that we did “everything” to help our son in his short life. By adding chiropractic to his care, we know that we did indeed do everything to make his life the best that it could possibly have been.

Thank you Dr. Erica, for making a difference in Benjamin’s life.”

I keep this and other testimonials close to me and close to my heart. It reminds me of my reason for what I do and gives me strength to keep spreading the message about chiropractic care and the body’s ability to heal and grow. This is not a “miracle” story in the way you would think of miraculous healing and stories of healing from certain medical conditions. It is however a miracle to that little boy and his family…a very small miracle that changed his and their world. I am in awe daily and grateful always to have chosen this profession.