peace
Reflecting on Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy and how his wise words help in finding PEACE
Dr. King championed courage, action, compassion, love and peace. He believed in hope and he believed that a better future was possible. He lived a life with intention and no regrets. While Dr. King may have been fighting a different battle, much can be learned from his legacy.
by Linley just days after brain surgery when she was barely opening her eyes. She was not happy with how messy her handwriting was, but this was the message she wanted posted on her hospital wall.
Finding peace during a nightmare is one of life’s biggest challenges. I’m not sure I ever found peace after Linley’s diagnosis. Some days it was almost as if earth didn’t even exist under my feet. A blur of reality. What did help while we were in ‘survival mode’ can best be explained by the mantras Linley and I lived by:
HOPE IS STRONGER THAN FEAR
KEEP F-ING GOING
Mine, obviously the latter, came from an inscription on a bracelet given to me by a friend (and if you know her, you know it was the non-censored version). I needed it- I needed to repeat those words. They remind me of Dr. King’s famous quote:
We were also able to push through those days by having hope and making a promise to not let anger dictate the rest of our lives. Like Dr. King, we chose to stick with LOVE.
You don’t have to have a child with cancer to feel like darkness is winning or to feel like you are at war with your thoughts. Peace-disruptors are just a part of life. The bigger the problem, the more disruptive they are. Like I’ve written in previous blog posts, I’m not going to let the insignificant, annoying little peace-disruptors of everyday life get to me.
Paper jam in the printer- what’s a little ink of the hands?
Car won’t start- good thing we have AAA
Dog’s muddy feet on the couch- eh, couch and dog are both washable
Long line at school pickup- I can be patient
Soccer ball marks all over the lower half of walls and basketball scuffs all over the top- our house is not a museum
We ran out of coffee- let’s not get crazy here- THIS is a problem
What little peace-disruptors will you let go? What helps you achieve peace?
Every day I take a step forward with the goal of making progress for Linley. I try to raise DIPG awareness, grow the Foundation, and make Linley proud. She inspires me to live like her- to have hope, not be afraid, and to live without regrets. She inspires me to love like her- with compassion and kindness for all. And she inspires me to have peace like her. Linley is always here helping me learn how to be my best self.
If you are looking to get closer to finding peace, keep the legacy of Dr. King in mind. Keep Linley, her mantra and her legacy in mind, and keep f-ing going.
To my Love for Linley family, thank you for helping create peace during chaos.
And to my girl, the best piece of me, my peace loving-little lady— keep shining your light and I will keep telling your Story.
Looking forward to Love for Linley Foundation’s 2023 events. We hope you can be there to say PEACE OUT, CANCER!
All my love,
