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A New Perspective

Dealing with a serious illness day in and day out puts things in a different perspective.  

“The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..” 
― John Milton, Paradise Lost

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Good vs Great

3/18/2013

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“Good is the enemy of great.”  Jim Collins

Settling for “good enough” keeps us from the pursuit of excellence.

One of my daughters had the opportunity to learn a great lesson Saturday.  I am not sure if it sank in yet, but she saw the difference between “good” and “excellent”.    She was competing in an oratorical contest for a scholarship and, as is sometimes the case with teens, she procrastinated in preparing for it.  The procrastination was driven not by laziness, but by an overly busy schedule.  As a result, she was up until midnight the night before working on the speech and then putting the finishing touches on it at seven the morning of the competition.

At the competition, my daughter did a good job presenting her speech and it was well-written; however, it was not memorized and she exceeded the time limit by five seconds.  The winners gave speeches that, in my opinion, were not as content-rich but they had obviously spent much time in preparation and memorization.  The judges favored preparedness and timeliness. 

On the way home, we talked about good vs excellent and the fact that to be excellent requires planning and sacrifice.  I explained to my daughter that I hoped she would learn from this experience that she is capable of having absolutely anything in life that she wants as long as she is willing to pay the price.  In this case, the price would have been hours of practice with a stopwatch.

I often hear people compare themselves to others in terms of finances or career success.  They may blame their situation on bad luck or poor circumstances but I think it comes down to one simple thing:  success requires sacrifice.  Those who are willing to sacrifice, eventually will become successful.  Those who don’t stop at “good enough” will achieve excellence and success will follow.

Do you believe you can have ANYTHING in life that you desire?  You can - but are you willing to pay the price?

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ALS Gala

3/11/2013

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For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
                                                       -  2 Cor 4:17-18
Saturday night we had the privilege of attending the annual ALS fundraising gala.  When we received the invitation, we were hesitant to commit to attending.  We were concerned about people we may see in various stages of ALS and how that may impact Akhil's attitude.  Fortunately, we found that those fears were unwarranted as we were simply filled with hope at the event.
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Akhil looking sharp in his tuxedo!
The convention center ballroom was buzzing with about 600 supporters who must have all come prepared to generously give to this cause.  The goal was to raise $300,000 at this event and I believe that goal was reached.  We were encouraged by the generosity of people who bid $500 for a cake and $1200 for two dozen cookies to get the party started.  Their willingness to dig deep in their pockets to support ALS services and research made us feel that we are not alone - we have a small army fighting this battle with us.
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Corinne volunteered at the event.
The ALS Association was able to fund one dedicated research scientist for a year for $150,0000.  Imagine what they could do if the army were larger.   I hope if you aren't already passionate about a cause that you will take up this one.  With more funding, we could find treatments and maybe even a cure for this devastating disease.  When you have the opportunity to give, dig deep and know that you are making a big difference in those of us living with and caring for individuals with ALS.  I hope to someday be thanking you not only for your support but for contributing to the cure!
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Akhil's doctor, Kim Goslin, paid us a visit at the event.
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    Laura Jhaveri

    Wife and mother coping with the daily struggles caring for a family with a serious affliction.

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