Doing Good in the Neighborhood

What are some of the things that you do for your neighbors? And...when I say "neighbors", I'm not talking about the person living right next door to you, though they count too. I guess that doing "good" is second nature to me as it eventually enters each aspect of my life.

I'm a successful Independent AVON Sales Representative. The AVON company itself is hugely supportive of it's Representatives who make a difference in their communities, and as a whole, it supports many different philanthropic causes through the AVON Foundation. In fact, they've recently surpassed $582 million raised for the fight against breast cancer dedicating it to research and support of women who may not be able to afford adequate medical care. Sometimes it amazes me how much this corporation does for our communities. Many things the average person might not be aware of if they're not familiar with AVON.

Recently, I participated in a charity event organized by the Silvercrest Women's Club and all funds raised were donated to Good Neighbors, an organization in my area that helps hundreds of families in need. They provide food, clothing, winter coats, hats and gloves, and during the holiday season, they offer Christmas presents for needy people of all ages. My participation in this event, inspired me to donate much of my overstock and discontinued products to them to benefit their Christmas drive. Normally, I'd sell the products in question, but Good Neighbors has seen their needs more than triple since the economic crisis first started making headlines. Their program isn't the only one experiencing this. Requests for assistance from food pantries is increasing at an unprecedented rate with no signs of slowing.

I recently saw a saying on a church sign that really struck home because of it's absolute truth. The sign read:

"We can't help everyone, but each one of us can help one person."

Hoping to further spur donations to Good Neighbors to help our community, I've contacted a representative to set up an interview for an article I hope to publish with my content posted at Associated Content. Watch for it soon. I hope it benefits Good Neighbor's Christmas drive which is on schedule to begin next week.

Do something good for someone else today. If it's one thing that I've learned, when you feel down in the dumps yourself, you feel a heck of a lot better when you focus on doing something for someone else. It's the number one cure for depression as far as I'm concerned and get this....it requires NO DRUGS!

Until next time.....

A Sequel: The Happily Ever After of Tootsie Roll

A few days passed and Princess Amber Star was settling in nicely to her new home in the faraway land of Cuyahoga Falls. The little princesses were taking such very good care of her and she already loved them. There was only one small dark cloud on her happy horizon. She so missed her dear friend, Toots, short for Tootsie Roll.

Toots lived in the faraway land of Minerva, her hometown. Her lady, Lady Cindy, loved her very much but Princess Amber knew the hard trials that faced her because she, herself, had barely escaped the evil sorcerer......the one who'd pledged to kill both her and Toots. Princess Amber knew that the Lady Cindy was doing her very best to try and protect Toots, but she was still very scared that she wouldn't be able to continue to offer her complete protection. The evil sorcerer was very powerful. Princess Amber knew that in order for Lady Cindy to keep on protecting Toots, she'd have to go into hiding away from the evil sorcerer and it'd be hard to take Toots with her and go unnoticed. Toots had very distinctive markings for a Cocker Spaniel where she, herself, was more the standard and better to blend in with others of her breed.

A few days later, Princess Amber heard Sir Schneider telling the Lady Schneider that she'd received something called a phone message from a Lady Cindy. When she overheard the conversation, she almost couldn't contain her joy! Lady Cindy had reached out to Lady Schneider to see if she could find or would take in Toots until a new home could be found for her! Lady Cindy had been so moved seeing the love and care that had been shown when Lady Schneider and the princesses had come to claim her that she thought they might be willing to help Toots escape the evil sorcerer and she was right!

Lady Schneider just happened to know the perfect family that would welcome Toots with open arms. Why just the other day, she'd taken Princess Amber for a visit and they'd oohed and ahhed over her, telling her they, too, were searching for a dog to join their family.

Princess Amber's tailed wagged excitedly when Lady Schneider made a visit to Sir Thomas, their neighbor, his answer was an unequivocal YES! Now....it just so happens that Sir Thomas has a lovely little princess himself who is the same age and goes to school with Lady Schneider's little princess Mackenzie! Lady Schneider informed Sir Thomas that Toots was in dire need of a hair cut, that at the present moment, she looked much like a mop! He said that he'd be certain to care for her and take her to the groomers right away. With that detail settled, Lady Schneider offered to make the long trek to the faraway land of Minerva since she'd been there once before. Not wanting to make that long trip where she was sure to feel travel sickness, Princess Amber was content to stay at home with her new family and await her friend's arrival.

The reunion of Toots and Princess Amber Star.....was the stuff made of dreams.
Toot's new family adores her and Princess Amber has a friend and playmate very close by!

The Happily Ever After of Budda-Lou and Princess Amber Star

Once upon a time in the far away land of Cuyahoga Falls, a poor and frightened dog was discovered wandering nearby a famous place of worship, Pilgrim United Church of Christ. Thankfully, the dog had the good fortune to be discovered by a very kind-hearted lady, the good Pastor's wife. Though the Pastor's wife would have kindly taken the dog home to try and find his rightful owner, she knew that her husband would be much happier if she could find someone else who willing to take the dog home. At just that moment, Lady Schneider walked into the hallway and saw the dog with the good Pastor's wife. She, being a lady of soft heart, looked into the dog's sad eyes and couldn't resist attempting to rescue the animal. First, however, she had to convince her husband that this was the right thing to do.

Sir and Lady Schneider were the delighted parents of two lovely little princesses who were the apple of Sir Schneider's eye. His lady knew that he could never resist such a sweet request from them; for his heart was very soft when it came to his little princesses. However, on this point....the wish to obtain a new dog....he'd been very stern. For five years ago, Sir and Lady Schneider's pet Chihuahua had went to be with our Lord and the loss had laid heavy on Sir Schneider's heart. The feeling of loss of the beloved pet was so great that it caused his heart to harden against ever opening up to receive another pet again. His lady, on the other hand, for the last year, had been praying very hard that his heart would be changed for she so wished her little princesses to have a pet dog of their own and for herself to share too. She missed Ginger greatly and knew that another dog would not be the same, but would bring new joys. It was important to her that her little princesses know both the responsibility of caring for a pet and the unconditional love that a dog can show them.

Princess Mackenzie and Princess Maura were out in the play area in the back of the church when Lady Schneider brought the dog and they were so delighted and ran to retrieve the leash and began walking the dog to and fro. Sir Schneider frowned and looked at his lady wife....not pleased at all. When it became apparent that no one else was around, he discovered that they had no choice but to take the dog home with them. Despite the fact that his little princesses were joyous, he was not happy at all. His lady wife thought that she'd have to stay outside with the dog. Finally, he begrudgingly agreed that the dog could stay as long as every attempt was made at finding the owner and that it was his lady wife and the princesses that took care of the dog. HE wanted nothing whatsoever to do with it.

Lady Schneider promised that she'd do everything that she could to quickly find the owner of the dog. It was clear to all of them that the dog was not very young so had been a part of a family for a very long time. They would surely be missing their beloved pet. The princesses both agreed that it was very important to reunite them, yet a part of them hoped that they'd be able to keep the dog. Lady Schneider took a picture and planned to post it around the neighborhood and at prominent gathering places.

After spending time with his family and the dog....seeing how his little princesses took such loving care of the animal, Sir Schneider's heart began to melt a little. He told his lady wife that perhaps she ought not to look so hard for the family of the dog. Both she and he agreed that the animal's behavior was very strange....almost as if she'd not been well-taken care of by its family. The dog was very sad and terrified to cross streets....like she'd been dropped off and abandoned. Of course, they didn't know that this was true, but they felt that perhaps the dog would be better off with them.

The very next day, a visit from a neighbor resulted in some contact information being offered about the dog's family. It was confirmed by a very kindhearted soul, Lady Jo, who also attended the worship services of Pilgrim United Church and who was also an avid dog lover. Lady Jo had seen a picture at the local village market (Drug Mart) and it just so happened that the contact information was the same as that relayed by Lady Schneider's neighbor.

Lady Schneider's hands were tied and she had to contact the dog's family. She found that the dog's name was Budda-Lou and it belonged to the son of a very nice lady's maid who specialized in the dressing of ladies hair. She lived in the far away land of Akron. The dog was much older than Sir Schneider and Lady Schneider had thought and had simply wandered away one day. This explained greatly why the dog was so traumatized and didn't like to cross streets. Both she and the little princesses traveled one morning to the far-away land and returned Budda-Lou to her rightful owners. The lady was so happy that tears of gratefulness poured from her eyes. The Lady and her princesses were so happy to re-unite Budda-Lou and her family, but an empty place rested in their hearts that they'd not have a dog of their own for yet some time.

Little did they know......God had other plans.....

She called her dear husband at work to share with him the news that she had indeed returned Budda-Lou to her home and that the princesses, though sad, were happy to have done a good deed. Princess Mackenzie still remembered how she'd missed Ginger so when she'd been lost for that short time. Her kind heart did not like for another family to suffer through the loss of their beloved pet. And as Lady Schneider continued her conversation with her dear husband, she discovered an ad for another dog that was in dire need of a new home posted at ye olde community Craigslist.org. Much to her surprise, Sir Schneider said “Yes” when his lady wife asked if she could call! He instructed her to ask certain questions and she excitedly said good-bye and hung up with him to make the call.

Later that day, Lady Schneider had her first conversation with Lady Margie. She indicated that the dog's name was Princess Amber Star. She was a very good dog with very good breeding, of docile nature around 3 years old. She came from a very prestigious line of Cocker Spaniels...6^th generation champions, in fact. Lady Margie's life was in great turmoil and she could no longer care for Princess Amber in the manner that she deserved. Her greatest concern was to find a wonderful home where Princess Amber would be adored and cared for. After an hour-long conversation, Lady Schneider made arrangements to meet with Lady Margie the very next morning in the far away land of Minerva. Lady Schneider took the princesses with her on the trip so that everyone could meet together. Princess Amber adored the little princesses right away and the bond was sealed! The Schneider Clan had a new pet named Princess Amber Star!

Moral of the Story:

God's miracles happen in all sorts of ways. Lady Schneider and the two princesses had prayed and waited patiently for over a year for Sir Schneider's heart to be changed so that a new pet could be welcomed into the family. They weren't sure if it would ever happen, but kept right on praying knowing that God would find a way.

God blessed us by bringing Budda-Lou to us so that we could be blessed by Princess Amber Star!

What's going on?

The latest happenings:

AVON: As of Campaign 5, I was $784 away from making President's Club. I just checked my sales since C6 has just billed out and I am only $5 AWAY!! from making it! I'm at $10,095.00! I also have a recruit lead I'm working on and the girls currently active in my downline are steady producers. I sent out an email today to figure out a good evening for us all to get together and focus on different aspects of the business. I am darn right proud of myself too because for the last three months, I have been unable to drive and I still made it to PC despite that obstacle! Just imagine what I could have done had I been mobile! So...I guess that means I have no excuse for next year. I'm going to go check the requirements for making the next level so that I can set new/higher goals for next year!!

MUSIC: Well, I finally made it! I'd been saying that I was going to join the Cuyahoga Falls Community Chorus....I finally made it to my first rehearsal. It's fun! I'm sitting right beside Miriam in the Soprano Section First Row. Yesterday, second practice, the local T.V. Channel showed up and announced that they were filming a documentary on the Quirk Cultural Center and that we were going to be in it. Too funny! I'm going to be on Television!! WOW!

WRITING: I am excited to say that this is finally taking off. I've recently completed a rather large freelance project and am embarking on a new one this week. I have to attend a conference call on Thursday night at 10 p.m. for training. As for my creative writing, I've kind of fell off the band wagon since partipating in NaNoWrimo. I did great during it, writing nearly 24,000 words, but now I'm at a standstill. Ideas noodle around from time to time about the characters, I write them down, and then see if they are a good fit. Then I'll piece it together. Nothing is firmly-set with this project at all. It all flowed so smoothly during Nano and for a short while after it, but now the creativity is more haphazard. Haven't been able to write any lyrics at all. Started to...a couple of times...but it just didn't go anywhere.

Nighty-night & Sweet Dreams