Sometimes you have to remember to keep breathing. This may seem like a confusing statement as breathing is an involuntary function we all do to keep alive. What I am talking about is actually taking the air deep in through our noses, and deep into our lungs, letting it expand all the way into our abdomens so we feel satiated by oxygen and our brains have the ability to make clear, rational thoughts. Then pushing all that air back out through your mouth, letting your lungs deflate and repeating the process all over again.

I was someone who struggled with headaches and mild anxiety as a result of post traumatic stress disorder for several years. It wasn’t until very recently when someone suggested to me that I maybe I should try some deep breathing and I found it really helped. The practice of fully oxygenating your cells and giving your brain all the air it needs can do wonders for anxiety, sleep disorders, ailments like headaches, restless legs, neck tension, irregular heartbeats, digestive issues and other disorders of the airways like asthma. I’m not here to give any medical advice as I’m not a trained medical professional but I have certainly found that taking slow, deep, intentional breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth can really help to calm your body and mind in stressful situations.

Just yesterday, I was on my way home from work and I was admiring all the beautiful leaves when out of nowhere, a deer jumped out in front of my car. Sadly, I hit the deer and it died. This was a very traumatic experience for me as it reminded me of a previous car accident I had been in many years ago where I was the victim in a car crash. My first instinct was to hold my breath as soon as the crash occurred.

This is something I have done since I was a little girl as a way to deal with trauma and pain. I got out of the vehicle in a panic to see if the deer was still alive and then I immediately got back in my car, and called the police. I was shaking but I was also holding my breath and breathing very shallowly. I started to feel a bit lightheaded and like I was getting a little bit dizzy and it was then that I had to remind myself to drink some water and take some deep breaths. I held on to the steering wheel, and I blew out all the air in my lungs. As I waited for the police officer to arrive, I took about 6 deep breaths in through my nose and out through my mouth and I tried to calm myself down.

Yes, this had been a very traumatic experience and it had reminded me of another very traumatic episode in my life, but I was determined to handle myself with poise and not to lose my composure with the police officer. I was able to tell her exactly what happened and she then filled out an accident report. I drove myself home and then when I got to my house, I finally let the trauma of what had happened sink in. I took a bath and I had a good cry, not just for the deer who lost his life, but for the retraumatization that I had experienced with this accident.

I felt those emotions, I processed them and then this morning, when I went to pick up sweet little Alice (the little girl I nanny for), at her playgroup, I felt so safe strapping her into her car seat. I knew that I was going to be the safest driver with her. Today, as she napped on my chest, I waited for her breathing to even out and match my breathing and I was again reminded how our breathing can affect the moods and temperaments of those near to us. As my breathing deepened, she fell into a more peaceful sleep and I could feel her little body relax into me with each exhalation. As if to say, “thank you for keeping me safe with your breath and your heartbeat.”

Experiences like what happened to me yesterday can happen to anyone and they are all a part of the circle of life. I am grateful I wasn’t hurt. I am grateful no one else was with me in the car and that they also were not hurt and I am grateful my car is going to be just fine. For whatever reason, I was supposed to be part of what took that deer from this life and into his next one and I am sorry it had to be in such a sudden and rather traumatic way that our paths crossed, but I am grateful that he seemed to go rather quickly. I believe everything happens for a reason and while I am not sure what the lesson in this circumstance might be, I am certainly learning to be even more aware of my surroundings, I am thankful for the kindness of the police officer, who was so incredibly nice and very helpful to me. I actually ended up contacting her and asking her if she would like to have dinner with me so I could thank her for her kindness and she accepted my invitation.

I am also remembering that while trauma lives in our cells, we can retrain our bodies how to deal with it. Breath is life and breathing is a wonderful way to give energy to those cells and to our bodies. I challenge you all to take 6 deep breaths at a stop light today, or during a commercial break, or in between your next project or email you are about to answer at work. It will reenergize your soul. That is no doubt about it, GOOD STUFF indeed.

*Addendum to this post: the police officer I asked to dinner has now moved into the house across the street from me and I have become good friends with her. I sometimes watch her two little girls and we have become such a close part of each other’s lives. I do feel like that deer was the thing that brought us together that day. It was the thing that said, “hey, pay attention to the signs around you because amazing things are happening here and you just need to be present for them”. It is so incredible to see how life has unfolded and now I see deer all around me. Outside of my house, on the road, and they walk right up to me. I wonder if they might be my spirit animal. But I always remember to breath from my belly when I see one. It all works out how it is supposed to.

Grateful for this incredible journey that my life has been. Not always easy, but certainly never boring. Full of challenge and even more full of joy and triumph.

Gratitude for the body that supports me; repairing, restoring and renewing itself each year to guide me through to the next.

So much gratefulness for the loving circles of friends in my life. They honor me in so many ways. Some text, some call or send messages. Some make plans to meet up, or some send cards, flowers or just thoughts that make me feel like the luckiest gal in all the land.

For my family without whom I would not be. They birthed me, raised me, loved me, set me free and welcomed me back home with only love in their hearts. For that and for them, I am so eternally grateful.

For the love I have in my heart. The love I share with the world each day. The inner flame that sparks me to get out of bed each day and want to spread my joy every day of every year I have on this Earth for the rest of my life. I am so thankful, grateful and blessed.

Thank you 38. You, birthday, are my favorite. Gratitude abounds.

Recently, I was having a conversation with someone and as we were chatting they said three words to me that penetrated deep into my soul. She listened as I told her how some things about my life were currently causing me to feel a bit of anxiety and nervousness about the future, and she simply said, “Miranda, trust the process.” This was some of the best advice I have ever gotten. When you “trust the process”, you not only give up the need to be in control over things you have absolutely no power over, but you also are having some faith that things will work out how and when they are supposed to.

There are so many ways to “trust the process “ and lots of them can apply directly to you. It may be a new relationship you are trying to navigate to see if it really has legs or not. Or, maybe there’s a job you really wanted but didn’t get and now you’re feeling frustrated as to what your next move should be. Trusting the process and having faith that things will work out as they are intended to can really help bring your stress and anxiety down. I used to obsess a bit in regards to my future. I would work myself into a bit of a tizzy and not sleep well at night, stressing about things like where I was going to live one day or how I was going to afford my future and it wasn’t until I started to really ”trust the process” that I was able to let go of a lot of that unnecessary worry and anxiety.

Trusting and having faith doesn’t mean simply giving up and doing nothing. We often build support networks around us and make game plans that we may not even realize we’ve already set in place. If I had a nickel for every time I’ve moved apartments and thought, ”this is never going to be done!!” Yet in the end, things always get cleaned out and everything gets moved from one place to the next with the help of these support networks and game plans that I’ve developed over the years. Even that time my mom, brother and best friend ended up shipping the contents of what felt like my entire life across the country and put everything that remained in a storage unit for two years. #trusttheprocess

Whether you are looking at buying a house, moving to a new place, switching careers, starting a new educational endeavor, retiring from a job, having a baby, raising your kiddos, starting a new relationship, leaving an old relationship, feeling a bit stagnant in your current relationship, maybe you’re having the normal fears about aging parents and the circle of life, dealing with a health issue, not meeting your weight or fitness goals or you might just be a bit of an anxious and emotional person in general. Trust the process. Give it a try, and you’ve got nothing to lose.

If all else fails, call me, or leave a comment on this blog. I’ll walk the journey with you. We all need a shoulder to lean on, an ear to bend and a hand to hold sometimes. And that’s just GOOD STUFF!! #trusttheprocess

*

When I first lost you, I wondered if over time, I’d start to forget you. With each year that passes without you being in my physical life, the memories change. They don’t fade exactly, like photographs would, but they shift in the album of my mind.

I did a big clean out my closet this year. It’s the “in thing” people are doing these days. Konmari, or “sparking joy” is what it’s called. I knew you would be alright if I gave some of your old clothes away to people who were in need of them. I had some of them for over 17 years; since the autumn after you passed away. You were a teenager when you last wore them. I thanked the clothes for their service. I thanked them for the memories they gave me of you. I said “goodbye” to each piece, and I said “goodbye” again to a part of you.

It’s been an especially cold winter up here in Potsdam, NY, so I thought they would help keep someone warm and that would make you very happy. I kept a sweater of yours that I still wear when I need to wrap myself up in a part of you. I would swear I could still smell you when I wear it even though I’m sure it’s impossible after all these years, and so many washes. You are ingrained in the fabric of my soul, my sweet Laura.

Today is your birthday, and I am grateful for all the birthdays we were able to share together here on Earth. I think of you every year when this day comes. You were the very definition of a GOOD person who lived a GOOD life. I know you and Lizzie are having quite the party of your own today somewhere far from here. I love you, my sweet girl. You’ll always be my oldest friend and I’ll always tell your story. Happy 38th Birthday.

Love,

Mandy

I have a student who routinely likes to ask me questions. Sometimes they are questions about things pertaining to the work we are doing together in the Writing Center and sometimes they are just about anything she can think of. The other day she asked me if I had ever hit my head really hard, so I told her she needed to finish completing her assignment. Then I would tell her the story of how I went face first through the sunroof of my car and we would have a fascinating talk about head injuries.

Today, she asked me if I had any superpowers. (My student really likes comic book characters, Harry Potter, and fantasy type things). I thought I was going to have to disappoint her when I got an alert on my phone during one of our breaks. It was from my Facebook “On This Day” feature and it reminded me that exactly 4 years ago today, I received my third and final pacemaker implantation in Boston. I was at Brigham and Women’s hospital after I had rejected my pacemaker battery 3 times before a wonderful surgeon was able to place my pacemaker battery and leads for the 3rd and final time. My wonderful cardiologist from Albany sent me to him after deciding he wanted a “fresh set of eyes” to look at the situation. Now, as a result, I have a whole team of cardiologists who check in on my ”ticker”. It’s a wonderful, group of doctor’s and I love them all.

2015 HOSPITAL PICTURES ABOVE 👆🏼

So I explained to my student when we returned from our break today that I DID in fact, have a “superpower”. I had a battery that made my heart beat and it would likely make it beat for a very long time. In fact, someday, when I eventually am no longer living, someone will most likely have to turn it off. She thought that was pretty cool. I showed her a picture of what it looked like inside my body, (I have an x-ray on my phone of one of my first pacemakers) and I let her touch the one currently inside me where the skin near my shoulder covers the wire caps. I also told her they let me keep the old battery I had and that I had it at home. She asked me to please bring it in, as she would really like to see it and hold it in her hand. I told her I’d be happy to do that for her.

I had to remind her (& myself if we’re being honest) that having a pacemaker wasn’t my only “superpower”. Some of my other specialties include some things that are not battery operated like being able to soothe babies when they cry. I try to be an empathetic and compassionate friend and a good listener when people need a shoulder to lean on and an ear to bend. I can find the GOOD in almost any situation. That might not be a traditional superpower but being a positive person sure is a great life skill to have.

I try to be someone who will watch kids for free so you can go on a date with your “special someone”. Or so you can vote, get your hair done, go to a book club, or make that movie you’ve been trying to go to but life keeps getting in the way. Childcare isn’t cheap, & I can appreciate that.

I often pay for the person behind me in line at Dunkin’ Donuts because it makes my day when someone does that for me and starting a chain of kindness is totally what THE GOOD STUFF is all about. None of this makes me a saint or a hero, but I like to think it’s all a power I harness within myself to do “good stuff”, and really, that’s what it’s all about.

The biggest change between now and where I was 4 years ago, is just how stinking happy I am now!! I am so content with my life. I have family, friends, love & a work-life balance that brings a smile to my face and I just feel so full of life. I couldn’t be happier or feel luckier. I thank my lucky stars every day. So much good stuff has come my way and I am beyond grateful, thankful and so very blessed.

I know that if I ever get sick again, I’ll have a great team to care for me, wonderful friends and family to help me along the road to recovery and a glass half full of lemonade from life’s lemons to drink along the way.

But I’m incredibly hopeful that there is nothing but clear skies ahead for this gal!! Cheers to another year of #JUSTTHEGOODSTUFF!!! Next year will be #ONLYTHEGREATSTUFF!!!

What a year 2018 was for the Britt family. We had many exciting changes, transitions, new starts and chapters that have closed only for new ones to open again. This was a good year for our family in so many ways. 

      In February, we welcomed the newest member to our clan when Matt married Candice McRacken of Statesville, NC in a beautiful wedding ceremony down in Charlotte, NC. They had friends and family come from all over the world to the event and it was one truly incredible celebration held exactly one week before Matt’s 40th birthday.

The newlyweds currently reside in Ballston Lake, New York and plan to honeymoon in Italy in late-February. Matt works for Snyder Printer, the oldest print shop in the Capital District. Matt and Candice went to Detroit this past summer leaving him with only Arizona left on the list to complete his goal of seeing all the stadiums in Major League Baseball. 

    Candice works for NYSERDA (The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority) where she works as the office administrator for the Communications Department. She really enjoys the work she does there and her co-workers. Candice is also taking her love of cooking breakfast to new heights as the Sunday morning Cafe Chef and Events Liason at W.H. Buckley Farm. Candice has a real passion for making cobbler and we encourage you to check out some of her scrumptious cobblers online on her Instagram page @inthecompanyofcobbler for a peek at some of the delicious deserts she’s been baking lately. 

     Miranda has had quite a wonderful year. Her health is finally stable and she’s feeling pretty great. She started working again for the first time in 8 years this fall. She works part-time at the Writing Center at SUNY Canton as a professional tutor, working with students on everything from research papers to grad school applications and just loves it. She has continued to write her positivity blog at justthegoodstuff.blog and has had a wonderful response to that online since starting it over 2 years ago. She also watches the sweetest 8-month-old little girl named Alice a couple mornings during the week and they have quickly become the best of friends. Miranda has been quite the traveler this year visiting all different parts of the country. She also has gone on some epic adventures with her best friend, Kym. Together, they’ve explored places like Canada, California, and Kym was also Miranda’s “+1” to Matt and Candice’s wedding in February in North Carolina.

    2018 started quite differently for David than it ended. He began the year having been comfortably retired since January of 2017. He had adjusted to life as a “house husband” nicely, cooking wonderful dinners and also making semi-regular trips to see his 92-year-old mother living in Pennsylvania when sometime in July he was approached by the Business Department at SUNY Potsdam. They asked him if he would consider returning to the college yet again, only this time in a different capacity. He just finished teaching 3 sections of Intro to Accounting to approximately 75 students this fall and will do the same in the springtime. He is appreciated by both the faculty and students and although we’ve adjusted to life without as much of Dad’s great cooking, we know he’s making a difference, so the tradeoff is worth it.  

    Kickie finally retired from her job as the coordinator of Music Business and the executive director of The Crane Institute for Music Business and Entrepreneurship at The Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam this summer after 14 wonderful years there and 49 years of teaching. This time, retirement really seems to have “stuck”, although she is constantly exploring new ways in which she can stay connected to the Music Business industry and use her influence and connections to help others. She has a wonderful network or former students and colleagues she is in constant contact with and routinely gets check-in calls from lots of her other “kids”. In her spare time, Kickie is acting as the general contractor for the home renovation projects she and David started this fall. She and Miranda also try to get their 10,000 steps in each day, something they started last summer and are quite dedicated to. 

    We wrote this letter, all huddled together at Matt and Candice’s apartment on Christmas Eve, feeling so grateful that our family once again was fortunate enough to spend the holidays together all under the same roof. We are happy, healthy, and looking forward to 2019 with excitement to see what it might have in store for us all.  

Today I saw a matinee performance of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker and I had the pleasure of being seated amongst several 5, 6, and 7-year-olds. They provided me with nonstop giggles and amazing commentary that was too juicy not to repeat. I’ll warn you that some of the material in this post may not be suitable for young children even though it was almost entirely provided by them verbatim.

1st LITTLE GIRL

(As a ballerina is lifted off the ground in a full split position)

1st Little Girl: “Grandma, look! She’s like my Barbie doll…I don’t think she has a vagina either!!

Grandma: “Yes, honey, she does, but let’s talk about this later, ok?”

1st Little Girl: “No Grandma, I wanna talk about it RIGHT NOW!!”

2nd LITTLE GIRL

2nd Little Girl: (Repeatedly asking what country the dancers are representing), “Is this one China?”

Mom: “No Honey, it’s Arabia.”

(Music changes)

2nd Little Girl: “Is this one China?”

Mom: “No, it’s Russia.”

2nd Little Girl: “FIGURES!!”

1st LITTLE BOY

1st Little Boy: “I think they just killed the mice”

Mom: “No, they’re just sleeping”

1st Little Boy: “She used a sword…”

Mom: …

1st Little Boy: “Yeah, I don’t think they’re sleeping…”

2nd LITTLE BOY

2nd Little Boy: “Wow!! That guy has a really BIG…Nutcracker!!”

(Said in a not-so-subtle stage whisper. No one was quite sure what was gonna come out of his mouth!)

3rd LITTLE GIRL

3rd Little Girl: “Daddy, that lady isn’t wearing underpants. (Describing a nude leotard on stage.)

Dad: ”Yes she is”

3rd Little Girl: “Mommy says girls always have to wear underpants, except when you wear pajamas to bed, which is kinda weird, but that lady is not wearing any underpants at all!!

Dad: “No, I really think she is, but I’m sure Mommy is fine with it, just this once, regardless.”

2nd LITTLE BOY

*A beeper goes off in auditorium*

2nd Little Boy: “NO TEXTING!!”

I think the message in all this is that while the adage, “Everything is beautiful at the ballet” is, in fact, true and “While visions of sugar plums” (as well as snow queens, nutcrackers and many other magical creatures) may dance in our heads, there is NOTHING quite like seeing the holidays through the eyes of a child. Raw, real and oh, so GOOD!! Happy Holidays folks!!!

It’s crazy how quickly life can change. I went from being so incredibly sick a few Thanksgivings ago to then taking a few years to really try and get my body strong. Soon, I found myself having my days mostly free and filling them with doctors appointments, walks with friends and then slowly I began to travel as a way to test my body and see how my stamina was holding up. I would usually do pretty well after trips, but be good and tired for a few days and need some time to recover afterward.

It wasn’t until my second trip to Europe over the course of 1 year that I started really getting serious about my physical fitness. I actually put myself on training schedule so I could keep up with my best friend on our trip. I began walking every day and building muscle and my whole body transformed. It wasn’t long after that, I found myself getting a bit restless. The time I had once used to rest and heal, was no longer as necessary and I was feeling a need to be needed.

I wrote a blog post this summer called ”How Do You Enjoy Filling Your Days?” It was all about how my friend Sarah, a new friend at the time, had asked me that question one day when we met for coffee. Rather than ask “What do you do?” or “Where do you work?” I had loved that she asked me “How do you enjoy filling your days?” because while I didn’t have a traditional job, it still made me feel like I could contribute to the conversation and not feel awkward or embarrassed about my answer.

As fate, luck, or just life would have it, Sarah had her daughter, sweet little Alice, with her that day, who was only 8 weeks old at the time. Something really pulled me to Alice. She is an old soul and I have felt like since the moment I met her, we’ve been old friends. I started taking pictures of Alice that day and I haven’t stopped since. Alice has a warmth to her and a calmness that is just so special. I talk to her like I would an adult and she really seems to understand what I’m saying.

A couple of months ago, Sarah and her husband Will asked me if I would be interested in watching sweet Alice a couple of mornings during the week and it has become SUCH a bright spot in my life. Alice brings me so much joy and I try to give her as much love and support as I can for those few hours we spend together, growing and playing. I am very thankful for that little girl in my life as she warms my heart, makes me laugh and fills me with nothing but pure love and lots of really GOOD STUFF.

That same week I started watching Alice, another very cool thing happened to me. For the first time in 8 years, I went back to work. When I’m not with Alice, on the other days, I’m at the Writing Center at SUNY Canton and I couldn’t be more thankful for this opportunity either. The people I work with are smart, supportive and encouraging. They all want to help each other and most importantly they want to help the students. It is such a great feeling when you know you have really helped someone understand something better. The students are awesome and really smart, a lot of them just want some extra tools to add to their toolkit.

I’m constantly learning things myself and I’m realizing that I am a smart woman and I have a lot to offer these students. I have to give myself a break sometimes and remember that I was ”out of the game” for a long time and so now sometimes there’s a bit of a learning curve with some things. Generally, they’re just small adjustments and I’m getting used to them quickly but everyone has been overwhelmingly kind and supportive during this process and I couldn’t be happier there.

The quiet life I lived while I was healing was one I would not and could not change even if I had the choice. I learned so many lessons during it and it made me a much stronger person in the end. Like a caterpillar who goes into a chrysalis and comes out a butterfly, my time of transformation was a necessary one, but now, I feel like my basket is full, my blessings are many and my life is filled with abundance. And it is all so very GOOD. This butterfly is ready to take flight!!

#boogins

#sothankful

Today is an important day for me. One I celebrate every year. Today is the day I celebrate my life and the fact that it was saved. 11 years ago today I was hit by a drunk motorist who was traveling the wrong way on a one-way freeway. The physical damage I suffered as a result of the accident was severe but the psychological damage was pretty extensive too. It would take me years to recover from all of my injuries I sustained in the crash. I still have some lasting damage today.

Recently, I took a trip back out to San Diego, (where my accident happened), and while I was there, I had the opportunity to stop in and see both my maxillofacial plastic surgeon and my oculoplastic surgeon. It had been many years since I had seen either of them and I had decided it was an important part of cleaning up my past and moving forward with my future. It was also just a nice opportunity to say hello again. So I went back to see them and let them know that things had turned out alright for me throughout the years. It was an equally important part of the healing process for me emotionally.

When I first went to see Dr. Joel Berger, a week and a half after the crash back in 2007, I had already been operated on by a different surgeon (not Dr. Berger), immediately after the accident when I was first brought in to the hospital. That experience left me with more problems than progress as it would turn out and when Dr. Berger operated on me about two weeks after my initial surgery, he basically had to start from SCRATCH. My face was so infected it was rotting from the inside out. I had to be put on a PICC line in order to receive antibiotics and I was on a whole cocktail of other medications including steroids which we soon found out I had a problem with when I lifted my then 250lb father up from his chair and then set him down a few feet away. #roidrage

I also awoke to find myself with a wired jar. I had known from day one that I was missing 4 teeth and a bunch more were broken and would need to be fixed, but it didn’t really sink in until after that surgery when the real healing finally began. Dr. Berger and I would see each many more times over the next few years, but he was the one to explain the process of dental implants to me and also about how it would be something that would take several years, much to my dismay, but he remained patient and kind with me always telling me how “we’ll get there soon, sweetie.”

The man who gave me my sight back is also pretty wonderful. Dr. Asa Morton is truly a wizard. Tall, handsome, confident and so talented. He walked into my hospital room and immediately knew I was seeing three of everything. I was terrified as I had always had perfect vision and didn’t know if I would ever be able to see properly again let alone close my eye completely. Fortunately, with a few surgeries and a little magic from a donor graft from the roof of my mouth, I was able to not only regain my 20/20 vision, but I can completely close my eye again and you can barely notice the difference in the droop of my eyelid on my right side.

It was so therapeutic to visit the offices of both these doctors when I was out there in October and like always, Dr. Berger insisted on seeing my teeth and my dental bite. I was able to share pictures with patients in the office of what I looked like before and now hopefully anyone else who might be going through a similar journey can take comfort in the fact of knowing that it takes patience but it will happen for them too. You can get through anything. Sometimes you just need to clean up the past before you can start celebrating the future. And what a GOOD future it is. Celebrate with me today, won’t you?

Without trying to step into a political minefield that I really have no interest in debating. And with a desire to not give any more attention to a situation that I already feel is clearly unfortunate and for which there can be no real winners at the end of the day, I found myself looking for a silver lining to pin my joy to today when flipping through the news.

There was news about protesters and rallies and speeches, and even a segment about Ellen DeGeneres (who I happen to love), but none of it was giving me the “GOOD” feeling I was looking for. I’m a person who always tries to find the good in the bad, the light in the darkness and the silver lining amongst the darkest of clouds.

Today I read about two people who definitely gave me that “good amongst bad” feeling. They are the 2018 recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize, Dr. Denis Mukwege and Ms. Nadia Murad. Two amazing people who deserve so much more than just this recognition.

Dr. Mukwege is a gynecologist and surgeon from the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is often referred to as “The Man Who Mends Women”. He treats rape and sexual assault survivors who have been victims of rape as a weapon of war. His basic principle is “justice is everyone’s business”. He is so gentle with the women he treats and is aware that while they often need intense physical repairs, they also need emotional support services as well and he is always on the side of the patient first. He has been mending and treating these survivors for over 20 years now and has no plans to stop as long as there is a need for his services.

The trauma and unspeakable pain he must see every day is something I personally cannot even begin to fathom but knowing there are men like him out there who are tirelessly working to heal and mend these women is so inspiring. It made me want to learn more about him and these women to see if there is any way in which I too, could help. I found the Dr. Denis Mukwege Foundation online and encourage everyone to go take a minute and visit it. This may not be a “feel good” subject but it is one worth talking about. This foundation is providing life saving and life changing resources to women who have undergone tremendous violence and this man is fighting to bring an end to it and provide some healing and comfort to them.

Home

Ms. Nadia Murad is from the Northern Iraqi town of Sinjar where she was captured as a Yazidi minority by ISIS and sold as a sex slave as a means to use rape as a weapon of war. When thousands of woman refused to be named because of fear and shame, Murad insisted she be interviewed and photographed to bring attention to the cause and help stop sexual violence in war-torn countries.

In 2016, at age 23, she was made a UN Goodwill Ambassador for the dignity of survivors of human trafficking. Ms. Murad has bravely spoken out even though doing so might have put her in danger and has made it her mission to shed light on the cause of sexual violence and rape as a war crime. If you wish to learn more about Nadia’s journey or how to help the Yazidi women, visit the site I have posted below. She is a remarkable woman with an incredible will to survive and is someone I believe will change the world someday.

https://nadiasinitiative.org/justice4yazidis/

These two people receiving the Nobel Peace Prize felt like the perfect coda to a week marked with strife and upheaval surrounding issues involving sexual assault and violence. They both showed that there is absolutely GOOD that can come out of the very worst situations in life and that the light will always shine through the darkness.

#bethechange

#believesurvivors

#stoptheviolence