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YOU



YOU MAY NOT THINK THAT THE WORLD NEEDS YOU, BUT IT DOES.
FOR, YOU ARE UNIQUE, LIKE NO ONE THAT HAS EVER BEEN BEFORE OR WILL COME AFTER.
NO ONE CAN SPEAK WITH YOUR VOICE, SAY YOUR PIECE,
SMILE YOUR SMILE OR SHINE YOUR LIGHT.
NO ONE CAN TAKE YOUR PLACE, FOR IT IS YOURS ALONE TO FILL.
IF YOU ARE NOT THERE TO SHINE YOUR LIGHT ,
WHO KNOWS HOW MANY TRAVELERS WILL LOSE THEIR WAY
AS THEY TRY TO PASS BY YOUR EMPTY PLACE IN THE DARKNESS.

-LAWRENCE AND HAZEL MAHER



Background/explanation concerning the little poem above"
if you like, you are most welcome to send comments, or items of your own.
I can publish them here to share, as you direct me.

When I was injured in '92, just after return from service with ARCODS ,
my mysterious, degenerating condition found me both living and helping at the local shelter.
The overnight lifestyle change made me feel so abandoned,
and the shelter environment was frightening to me in less than perfect health;
my overriding mode was one of anguish and fear;
my "housemates" were often pretty scary types.

My disorientation due to my disability at that time
created a lot of confusion in handling my case, and I was mistaken, at first, for every variety of mental case...though my fears and behavior were logical under the circumstances.
So when my Mother, then in her sixties, my godmother and uncle
astounded me with their arrival at the shelter, to show moral support, it really helped.
Daily prayer and meditation helped, too, I have meds allergies, so the meditation served a medical purpose. It was so odd to be on the heavyhanded receiving end of shelter controls, which were supposed to help with getting the neurologicals under control.

But, not having done anything wrong, I could not not overcome the
shock of the abusive lifestyle I had stumbled into: "This can't be happening to me!"
When efforts to free myself from the Trashmasher did not yield results right away,
My self-esteem began to suffer.
An arts-friend, Barbara Beers gave me a copy of the poem above.
It seemed to "press all the right buttons"...I felt heartened, and passed it on, helping others again.
Few of us can do much without a a decent sense of self-esteem,
and I found that my lifelong experiences in brave work
made it difficult for me to accept my own disability with grace and a sense of self-worth.

Nietzsche, the philosopher said "that what don't break you, will make you"....
It is years since the accident that disabled me, I am healed, busy, and my life is nice,
and I find that I truly do appreciate the needs of others much more than I did because of my experience.
However, I will never recommend the method, in this instance, to anyone. I am still taking counselling for sporadic "ringing in the ears"...not funny.

So when you send a note, like the one above, to cheer or inspire, do it with the knowledge that such things truly do help, and are worth your trouble.
And when you are on the receiving end of these, do not be afraid to
take a second to allow it to help you, and then one more second to think who in your life
might need the same help that you just enjoyed, and pass it on.
Such things make a difference...such things count......AND SO DO YOU!


Other Holiday Mood Helps for the physically limited

Email: esfagan@ellefagan.com