How many times in our lives have we really wanted something, yet we never really see it come to pass? Rather than willing it we spend most of our time killing it even before it happens. It is amazing how the universe listens to us. When we put the slightest bit of negativity out there it somehow overpowers our intended desire and that which we wanted never seems to happen. Let me explain.

It is my belief that for something to truly come to fruition we have to be all in. We have to see it happening and believe with all our might that there is nothing that is going to get in the way of seeing our desire come true. For it is only when we can see it in reality that we put in the work and effort necessary for the wanted outcome to materialize.

Let’s say for instance that you need a new car. You can sit back and tell yourself that you want that car and wait for the universe to deliver it to you. At the same time you tell yourself that it’s never going to happen. You won’t win it, no one will give it to you and your never going to have the money to buy it anyway. You have killed the possibility of getting that car even before it has a chance to potentially become a reality. Now let’s say that you are all in. You know that you really need that car. You want it so bad that you give up your daily lattes and start putting extra money away in hopes that that car will become yours. You are so motivated and dedicated that before you know it that shiny car is sitting in your driveway.

To truly achieve what we want in life we have to be all in. We have to will it to happen and we have to put in the work and dedication necessary to see it through. Mediocre commitment brings about mediocre results. However, true commitment brings about that which we truly desire. If we let our hearts speak to us, we will know if what we are seeking is worth the effort. If the true commitment isn’t there then it was probably never meant to be in the first place.

Have a great day and remember to be the reason someone smiles today.

Ron

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Don’t we owe it to ourselves to be the best we can be? Are we ever really satisfied with being just mediocre when we know that we have so much more potential within us? I believe that we all have the ability to do something great that has an effect on the world and the people around us. It often only requires us tapping into that ability that lies deep within us and nurturing and growing that ability to its full potential.

When I was growing up I pushed myself hard to be the best at everything I did. Whether it be my public speaking, music or academics, I never settled for second best. While that drives you to be the best you can be, it also comes with certain pitfalls as you strive for perfection. When I came to the realization that I didn’t need to be perfect at everything, I had to just achieve my perceived level of awesome, then some of the pressure was relieved.

The one thing that we have to be careful of is trying to live up to others definition of awesome, rather than striving for our own definition of what that means. What average and awesome mean to me may not be the same as what it means to you. That doesn’t make either one right or wrong. Striving to live up to someone else’s definition is where we start to get ourselves into trouble.

For many years growing up I cared about what others thought. I let others define my success and ability and as a result I walked around with my head pointed to the ground, never looking up. It was when I discovered that what others said or thought didn’t matter, as long as I was content with my own drive and ambition, that my head started to lift. In doing so I discovered a whole new world that was all around me. It was when I started to live by my own definition of average and awesome that I truly started to live.

We all have our own gifts and talents that contribute to the world around us. Our level of ability in those gifts and talents are no worse or better than others and we need to believe that. Living by our own definition of what makes us average or awesome helps us live a more content and happy life.

Have a great weekend and remember to be the reason someone smiles.

Ron

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One of the most beautiful things about waking up in the morning is that the past is behind you and you have a clean slate to begin another day. Even more beautiful is the fact that the day can be anything you want it to be. You have total control over what your day is going to be like even if faced with adversity. Others can’t make us feel a certain way, as we have total control over the power of what we feel.

Have you ever encountered those people who just seem naturally happy? They are always cheerful, they never seem down and they seem to have this glow about them that we only wish we had? Ok, sometimes you just want to slap them because they are just too darn happy. But really we just wish they would bottle up what they have and sell it so we can buy a bottle for ourselves.

Every minute of every day is the beginning of anything that we want it to be. How we spend it and what is sets us up for in the minutes to come are totally within our control. We can take bad experiences and make them positive or choose to let those experiences mire us down and take us to a place where we would rather not go. Other individuals can not force us down one path or another, only we can decide the path for ourselves.

The beauty of a new day is that it comes with so much potential. Both the expected and unexpected provide us opportunities to lay our heads on the pillow at night and be content with what we have accomplished. Unfortunately, wasted minutes we can not get back, which is why it is incredibly important to make the most of what what every minute has to offer. That doesn’t mean that we have to stress ourselves to try and accomplish more than we are able, but it does mean that we have to be smart about making the most out of every minute that we can.

As you get older, you hear everyone say how fast time is going by. You take down the holiday decorations and before you know it you are putting them up again. Days run into weeks and weeks run into months and years. In reality, time isn’t getting any faster, but how we live our lives is certainly giving us that perception. That is why it is important to make sure that we live every minute with the belief that the next minute can be the beginning of anything that we want it to be. May your next minute be magical.

Have a great day and remember to be the reason someone smiles.

Ron

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They say that there are two things that are for certain in life, death and paying taxes. Well in reality you could not pay your taxes but certainly with bad consequences. However there is no way to cheat death, or at least not yet. It is a process that we all have to deal with in our lives. Having a loved one leave us is a painful experience that often takes us a lot of time to get over, if we ever do. But in the end, do they ever really leave us?

My grandmother and I were very close when I was growing up. I did everything with her, as I have written about in the past. I just assumed that she was going to be around forever as she has always been there. Given that she was 96 when she passed, she almost was. I thought that when the day came that she was gone that there was no way I was going to be able to deal with it. But the human spirit has this innate ability to cope and adapt to life events such as that. We often find a way to go on and to do great things. I think the one thing that helped me the most was that although she was gone, she never really was.

In the several years since my grandmother has passed I have seen her show herself in more ways than you can imagine. I am not sure if it is because of the fact that I started Bring Smiles to Seniors in her honor or if it is because of how close we were. But she finds the most clever ways to make herself known that it leaves me with no doubt that she is not truly gone. It is those things that confirm for me that our spirits and souls are still connected as they always were.

The day my grandmother died, I left the nursing home and went back to my hotel room to get a few hours of sleep as we had been up all night with her. As I lay there I felt someone sit down on the bed next to me, which startled me at first. However, when I rolled over no-one was there and I was in the room alone. It was in that moment that I knew she was never truly gone and her guiding hand would help me do all the things that I was left to do.

If you are grieving a loved one, I hope that they too find their way to you and you open yourself up to believing that they are always with you and never really gone. The love that binds us is powerful, wonderful and beautiful. If we channel that love into amazing works to create a better world there is nothing that we can’t do.

Have a great day and remember to be the reason someone smiles today.

Ron

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There have been many times in the program where I have spoken or written about passion and the benefits of following it. We often go through our lives questioning why we are here? We do all the things society says we are supposed to do like getting married, having children, going to college and buying a home. Yet, at the end of the day there still seems to be something missing inside and we continue to question just what our purpose is for being on this planet.

Sometimes, it takes many years for us to get to the true understanding of why we are here. Unfortunately, for some they never figure it out. However, if we are truly looking for it, we often don’t have to look too far to discover what it may be. It usually lies within the realm of our passion. Ask yourself what it is that truly makes your soul sing?  What is it that once you have done it makes you feel accomplished, satisfied and complete. It doesn’t have to be some big thing that changes the world. It can be one small act that you are able to replicate and repeat that continues to bring you that joy that you are lookin for.

In this program we have grown our network of card artists exponentially. I have heard from many of you that you were looking for a way to give back, to share your craft and to find an outlet for your cards that make a difference. The chain of events that you kick off when you place those handmade cards in the mail is beyond your wildest imagination. I have placed those cards in seniors hands directly and seen the power of what your work does. I have seen your cards change demeanors, moods and faces. I have heard from senior communities about the difference that the cards made when they were passed out to residents. You may see it as a card you have made, there is no question that that the cards you make are changing lives.

We all have things that drive passion within us. When we spend more time on those things that nourish that passion rather than others that bring us no benefit, it is only then that we begin to recognize and develop our purpose. Once we discover our purpose then the possibilities are endless. I am so glad to have found my purpose, but I truly believe that I have only scratched the surface of the potential. The fact that I have all of you on the journey with me makes it all the more special.

Have a great day and remember to be the reason someone smiles.

Ron

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Yesterday, I went to see the movie Mary Queen of Scots for the first time. I have always been interested in period movies and especially English history. I knew her story but not of some of the intricate details of what eventually led to her downfall and execution. As I sat in the theatre, I began to think about all the wars and conflicts over time and realized that usually they resulted from two things, the lust for power or religion. Then I began to think what the world would be like if the rather than the fight being against each other, we fought together for common causes to better the lives of everyone and the lands where we live.

Conflict isn’t always bad as it brings about new ideas and thinking that eventually can lead to providing a better life for those affected by the conflict. It induces thought provoking challenges to come up with improved ways of doing things and new ideas to make our lives better. Where it becomes an issue is when it is mandated that one side win in the conflict over the other. It is at those moments that certain sides will go out of their way and pull out all stops, no matter the cost, to ensure that they win. If those desires were combined to produce an enormously beneficial outcome for all parties, then the dynamics of the conflict change.

I do believe in healthy competition, but is it always necessary for one side to win over the other?  Think about a work situation where you have two teams competing against each other to create a product. That healthy competition pushes each side to come up with the best they can create and then it stops. What if at the end of that competition the two competing teams join together and use the combined intellect of the entire group to make the product even better than what was originally created, all for the good of the company? The same could be said for other areas of opportunities in our lives.

The unfortunate thing about conflict that requires someone to win and someone to lose is that there are many people caught in the crosshairs that suffer from that fight. People who are just hoping to live their lives with the resources they have available and hoping for a little better tomorrow. If the world ever figures out how to work together rather than against each other, what a wonderful world that could be!

Have a great day and remember to be the reason someone smiles.

Ron

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Nowhere is gratitude more evident than throughout the holidays. We see it on an individuals face when they open our gift. It is shown by our host when we present them with a thank you present at a party. It is on the face of the Salvation Army bell ringer when you drop a few coins in the red kettle. No matter where you go, somewhere you find someone showing gratitude for a deed that was just done or gift that was given.

If you have ever had the opportunity to experience seniors’ faces when being presented with something as small as a card or the voice of child performing a concert for them, then you have had the opportunity to see gratitude magnified. For at that time, in that moment the seniors get the reminder that they have so needed that they matter, they are remembered and they are special.

Gratitude and giving are rampant throughout the holidays, but what happens when all those presents or cards are opened and the last decoration is taken down? We seem to enter into a period where the world goes on about its business, seniors fall back into obscurity and wait for that next holiday when they will be remembered again. It is that very reason that this program was started.

Not only did we see the need to ensure that seniors were remembered and loved, we knew that the need became even greater once holidays pass. We needed to take care of all those months throughout the year where they need that extra little touch to connect them back to the world and remind them that they are not alone. It is why the need was great to get children involved to teach them early in life about the importance of taking care of our seniors and eventually their parents and grandparents, who deserve to be an integral part of their lives always.

This year I had eternal gratitude for everyone who participated in the Bring Smiles to Seniors program last year. For the first time we didn’t have to buy a single card and still managed to deliver 40,515 cards. We received enough donations to cover all of our mailing costs to send to senior communities in all 50 states twice! We had decorators join our program that decorate and write messages in your cards by the thousands. We had an amazing year. At the same time I am a bit petrified that I set the 2019 goal at 50,000. However I believe that gratitude and giving is contagious. I also know that with my grandmother watching over every part of this program great things are possible. That is all because of all of you and I am so grateful.

Have a great weekend and remember to be the reason someone smiles.

Ron

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It is a new year for Bring Smiles to Seniors and I hope that you all had holidays that were filled with love, laughter, celebration and magic. What an incredible year for our organization as we delivered 40,515 cards to over 200 unique senior communities in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. We could not have done it without all the help of the people who support this program and are excited for what 2019 will bring. Last year, I set a goal of 20,000 cards after having delivered 18,810 in 2017 and we blew that goal out of the water. This year I am going to go the other direction and go out on a limb and set a goal of 50,000 cards in 2019. If the card supplies and resources for mailings arrive, I know we can do it.

The need for moral support and reminders of love in the senior community has never been greater. The message is always the same no matter which senior community you talk to. Where there are individuals who are lucky enough to still have family involved and receive visits, there are just as many that are alone and forgotten. Many placed in a community who never see the outside of the four walls again, as well those who are at home without people who care. These are real people who need to be reminded that they are loved and not forgotten and it is up to us to provide that extra touch that matters. As long as we have breath in us every single senior that we can reach will get that reminder they so desperately need.

One of the most amazing things that my grandmother instilled in me early on was the need to make sure that our elderly were revered and taken care of. All the nights I sat with her as she visited the seniors in the community that were bedridden or homebound I watched and listened. Taking it all in, I knew that someday I was destined to do something different and over the last few years I have definitely been shown my path. My dream someday is to be able to find a sponsor so that we can make this program as big as it can go. Until then, we will reach as many seniors as we can with the energy that we can muster.

The beautiful thing about New Years are that you get to start all over. You have a clean slate to accomplish anything that you set your mind to and the possibilities are endless. I look forward to what we accomplish together in 2019 and I am especially glad to have you on this journey with me.

Have a great day and remember to be the reason someone smiles

Ron

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Yesterday, on my Facebook news feed this image came up that I posted a year ago. It said” The most dangerous risk of all – the risk of spending your life not doing what you want on the bet you can buy yourself the freedom to do it later.” Going through the Lymphoma diagnosis with my dad made this reminder even more meaningful than it was a year ago.

How many times during the course of our lives do we pass on doing what we actually want in the moment, in hopes that we will get to it some day? Opportunities come our way to have experiences that we simply put off till tomorrow, in hopes that we will get to it at some point. However, when tomorrow never comes we find ourselves wishing we had, rather than enjoying the memories of what could have been.

When is a better time than right now to do the things we want? How do we know years from now our desire will still be there? In fact, how do we know that our circumstances wont change that make it impossible to enjoy what might have been? We don’t… and that is the issue.

I believe that life is made more meaningful by living it to the fullest. When it presents us with opportunities, we owe it to ourselves to maximize those opportunities to nurture our souls. Positive life experiences are what makes it meaningful. At the end of the day a meaningful life is what we all strive for.

The next time that you are presented an opportunity and you hesitate, ask yourself if you can guarantee that the opportunity will present itself again? Are you positive that you will be in the same position to accept and enjoy it if it does? If your not so sure, try something novel and grab the opportunity while you can and in turn make your life just that much more special.

Have a great day and remember to be the reason someone smiles.

Have you ever had that moment when your body and soul are trying to tell you something but you just can’t quite figure out what it is?  There is something you are supposed to know, yet you either are just too busy trying to get on with your day and life that you don’t take the time to stop and listen?  Finally, when you do figure out what it was, you wish you had because it would have been better to know sooner? This morning I am going to share a personal story that reminds us all of the importance of listening to our body and soul when it is trying to speak to us.

About eight years ago, I woke up one morning with a very weird feeling. This particular morning, I sat up in bed and all of the sudden a voice inside of me told me that I needed to schedule an endoscopy (a procedure where they go down through your throat and take a look at you from the inside). I had been on acid reflux medicine for many years and had an endoscopy done back when they put me on the medicine, but that was six or seven years prior.  The doctor had never told me I was supposed to have them periodically to check things out because I had been on the medication for so long. However, this particular morning my inside doctor was speaking loud and clear.

For once I listened, promptly found a gastrointerologist and made an appointment. Within a week I was scheduled for the endoscopy. I expected it to be routine.  I was young…well younger in my 40’s, healthy, feeling fine and absolutely no symptoms. When I sat down with the doctor post the procedure, I was floored by what he told me. He spouted out a bunch of words I couldn’t understand and recommended that I see a specialist within the week, which I did.

To make a very long story much shorter, I discovered that I had a gastro intestinal stromal tumor (GIST) which was very rare at the junction of my esophagus and stomach. I had never even heard of these tumors and went to work doing my research.  Anyone who has had anything will tell you that researching what you have on the internet rarely is good experience.  I learned that there wasn’t a lot known about these types of tumors because they were so rare, that catching them early was key and that they almost always turn to cancer.

Fortunately for me, I had a great set of doctors. I underwent surgery where they removed the tumor and a piece of my stomach where the tumor was located and waited patiently for the lab results to come back. Finally, the news came that we had caught it in time.  It was benign and they were able to remove it with great margins.  Today other than having an endoscopy every five years, so far no return of the tumor or any new ones.

I learned a lesson that day to always listen to my body and soul. It often speaks to us and lets us know that it needs attention.  It is incredibly important that we take the time to stop, listen and devote the time and energy to understand what our body and soul are trying to say.  I listened that morning. Because I did  I am still here doing the work that I was supposed to do in this lifetime.

The next time your body and soul are trying to send you a message, whatever it may be, listen. If we don’t take care of ourselves first, it makes it impossible to take care of others. When we believe in our own importance and remember that we have a purpose for being here, even if we haven’t discovered it yet, in time we will.  We just need to listen.

With that, take care of yourself, have a great day and remember to be the reason someone smiles.

Ron