As we approach the holiday season, I wanted to share some of my thoughts about thanks and giving.
I am the ultimate turkey scrooge. Cooking for others sends me into a panic. I hate looking in cookbooks because if I like a recipe I know I have to make a list for it then shop for it. Since shopping is what really sends me into a panic I just don’t look in cookbooks. Pathetic, I know, but true. Besides, I might forget an important ingredient that means I’ll have to go back to the store. You get what I mean, I’m sure.
So, this being Thanksgiving my whole heart is into the Thank you’s, not necessarily into the Giving because Thanksgiving giving is the giving of food. To make sure I don’t have to cook I gave my stove away to a friend. Perhaps I’ll get another one but not before Thanksgiving this year!
Looking back on this year I am bowled over by the progress we have made at Bring Change 2 Mind and it’s all been because of YOU, our huge family. So many have found us, so many have become involved not only through NAMI Walks but through writing blogs or forming groups who help raise money for us like the Mullica Hills Women’s Triathlon Club in New Jersey.
And the young people! From babies on the walks to teenagers, there has been such great involvement from young people. Getting them involved is what will inevitably bring about a change in how everyone thinks about mental illness. They will grow up knowing that mental illness is a disorder, not something to turn our backs on or joke about or use as an insult.
Glenn, Calen, Meg (his wife – sorry ladies!) and I shot our new PSA in NY this year. Oh, I forgot Snitz! She was there too and the only one who stayed warm with her thick Montana fur. I want to thank my brave son for being ‘the face’ in the new PSA and thank Meg for being part of it all.
Glenn and I spoke to amazing groups of people, from Houston to Akron to Omaha. I have been so moved by the stories I hear everywhere I go, and that includes home. Calen and I spoke, with Dr. Levy from McLean Hospital, to our home crowd in Bozeman, Montana. So many people came that many were turned away. Thank you Houston and Akron and Omaha and Bozeman! I’m thankful to all of you who are bringing the issue of mental illness to the forefront of our consciousness. Awareness comes first, then we can begin to change, not only our attitudes but how the mentally ill are treated in our law enforcement and medical systems.
Thanks to ALL OF YOU for helping us attain this goal and for telling your friends and family about your involvement with Bring Change 2 Mind. We want more people to join our movement of change. We shall overcome!
With love and best wishes for a great Thanksgiving,
Jessie
