What I found when I was searching for "DIY greeting cards." Horrifying.
This morning, I:
- Dragged myself out of bed while still trying to remember the fabulous dream I had about helping my family pick out a pet tiger from the Tiger Humane Society (usual)
- Turned on the coffee pot before I had actually put coffee into it and consequently made a delicious pot of hot water (usual)
- Checked my email; deleted the latest Groupon offer. Told myself, as I do every morning, that I should unsubscribe from Groupon but then did nothing about it (usual)
- Opened a notification from Paypal that said…what? The Great Exchange received its first donation from a complete stranger? Unusual!
With any luck, in a few years this feeling won’t be unusual. But today, an attorney in Albany, New York gave the Great Exchange a small vote of confidence…and I haven’t felt this good since I found out I was going to Finland for free (another story for another time).
Do you remember how wonderful the world was when you were a child? Well, the Great Exchange is currently in its “child” phase, and nearly everything–from a bump in traffic on this blog to the smallest of donations–feels big and weird and awe-inspiring. Sure, in a few years The Great Exchange will be as old and wizened as a retired police cop (“I’ve seen it all in my day, kids”), but today, I am making a homemade greeting card for a man I don’t know who believes in disability rights and inclusion.
And then I’m redoubling my efforts to get fiscal sponsorship, and I’ll probably look into opening a Great Exchange bank account, and I need to create an on-the-fly donor management system.This donation is a great reminder of all the things I have left to do.
Hi! I just discovered this web-site. What you promote for people with disabilities is wonderful. I am a living example of what a person with multipile disabilities can do with their life…Nothing just came to me, I made a special effort to get myself out into the world. Which by the way, is not so easy to do, since I have agraphobia, and severe panic attacks…As an artist, I volunteer with senior citizens. I also am an advocate for seniors who cannot speak for themselves…I also started a free arts and crafts program for the children in my improvished community..I also belong to the same senior citizen center that I am an volunteer art teacher. There, I am in a little theater group, I am in the garden club, and I just finished painting a mural on the co-op garden wall..I also have taurmatic brain disorder, which sometimes, I have problems with my speech. This does not stop me. I also work two days a week in a garden, this job did not come to me, I went for it. I also was just asked to be a model in various shows for ladies over 50 years old. I am such a ham! I don’t let anything or anyone stop me from what I want to do. I feel that faith in a higher power really helps me as well. I would liked to be involved with your worthy organization…Sincerely, Alexis Hall
I feel you! During the initial start-up, EVERYTHING is exciting! I have a book I wrote that I offer digitally on my site and guess what? Last week – the same thing! I saw a PayPal e-mail crediting me for selling the first copy of my book! It definitely helped with the momentum…
Nice work! Can’t wait to hear about all your further success with your organization!
Thanks, Jenn! I keep meaning to prod you for a long overdue update. Hope all is well at ORCAN…and in Oregon, in general!
Congrats Meg! You’ve earned this!