Day 33

While I was at work today, I went on to facebook and saw that one of my good friend's posted a link and a video that read "Help 3-year-old Shira beat cancer!" there was a picture of a little baby girl, boiled in her mother's arms. So I clicked it, the video was in Hebrew. The story is that the BAREL family had a happy and peaceful life, the father, the mother and five sweet little children. Like in all the stories, it began suddenly one day when their daughter Shira did not feel well. At the beginning, they thought that this is one of the usual kids' sicknesses, until the worst possible blow came down on them unexpectedly. Shira was diagnosed as suffering from brain cancer and she was only 3. Ever since then, their lives have changed from one extreme to the other. Her father remains by her bedside at the Pediatric Oncology Department at the Chaim Sheba Medical Center of Tel Hashomer, Israel, and as a result, he has been obliged to resign from his work. Whereas his wife is torn between the visits to the hospital and caring for the four little ones remaining at home.
A few weeks ago, Shira underwent a brain operation. After a difficult recovery, the malignant brain tumor reemerged with metastasis spreading to the spinal cord. Now Shira needs a treatment based on medication, which is quite expensive and the Barel family does not know, from where they will get the money. Her father says : “She is so little and so sweet, she does not understand why so many instruments are connected to her body and what for. She wants to have fun in a playground and enjoy herself like all the kids of her age.”
In the near future, the Barel Family will be obliged to evacuate their apartment: because of their difficult financial situation, they cannot raise payment for the rent. Furthermore, they have to fund from their own pocket the expensive medicines, which are not included in the Health Benefits Package and for which they have to foot the bill. And to do that they have been borrowing from everyone and anyone, especially since they have both lost their jobs and thus have been left without any source of income.
Shira has a twin brother, which in the video the mother explained that at times when Shira is hurting he points to the spot on his body that she is feeling pain, incredible. Shira's mother was so embarrassed to ask for money to help her daughter, that she even breakdown in tears on national television, it just broke my heart. It's so sad.
I know there are a million stories like this everyday all around the world, but I really take each case personally, its the reason I volunteer with the RMH. This is a life, its so precious and pure. It's a baby that deserves the chance to live and see a beautiful world; learn how ride a bike, play dress up, be able to have braids in her hair, dance, sing, laugh, jump, run after bubbles and grow up. If you can please help donate even just a $1 it will help! You gotta remember that every penny adds up! This little princess is such a fighter, please allow her her the ability of the gift of life.
I just donated $20.

I had to cancel Thursday's volunteer at the RMH because I forgot that I have a health examination for the Oranim Program. It's all good, I'll be there next week.
Tonight, I saw the movie 7 Pounds, which is one of my all time favorite movies! That movies gets me every time, I cant help but to burst into tears. What an amazing movie. SELFLESS. SELFLESS. SELFLESS. If you haven't watched you HAVE TO! I also need to see the Pursuit to Happiness, I actually bought it and haven't watched it but because I know its the same director and writer, I MUST! I heard its just as an amazing movie, kinda makes it hard to believe.
After that was over, I also watched a little bit of The Secret. I know all about The Secret and have been doing it for years even before I know how to identify what I was doing. Yet sometimes I do lose the drive and motivation to keep going with different things that are in my life. So yesterday when I watched it, a part that stood out for me was writing a list of all the things you are grateful for. Tomorrow I'm gonna go to my favorite spot at the beach and write it down. I feel that it will motivate me on the path of happiness and goal achieving. I always like to share things like that with my little 14 year old sister. I actually bought her the TEENS Secret, which I personally found better then The Secret. I was telling her that I was gonna make a list and that she should too. I love her, she is my pride in joy and one of my biggest achievements at bettering someones life. I really feel like I raised her to be such a smart, open-minded, big dreamer, young lady, with such passion, love, compassion, and self awareness. She was a few steps ahead of me, she told me that she wrote a list about 2 weeks ago and that every morning when she wakes up, she writes 5 things that she is grateful for. Her list now is at about 300 and it keeps her happy, grateful, appreciative, and passionate everyday. She is amazing. I do highly recommend you do this, just to see how blessed you truly are.
I also got the chance today to send my Grant letter to the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles because I'm runnin out of time, cross your fingers for me!

“Dreams are like the paints of a great artist. Your dreams are your paints, the world is your canvas. Believing, is the brush that converts your dreams into a masterpiece of reality.”



The Article video about Shira: http://reshet.ynet.co.il/חדשות/News/Domestic/Health/Article,36974.aspx

Shira's personal website for donation: http://www.shirab.co.il/len

Day 32

What an interesting little day.
This morning, I went into work at SC and while I was at work I got a phone call from Jennifer, she is such a sweetheart. She was in shock to read my message and wouldn't stop apologizing about everything that happened. She asked me to tell her what happened, apparently the same thing happened with another volunteer a few days back. The same person that told me that they didn't need me and said there was too many volunteers, did the very same thing to another volunteer and because of that situation Jennifer was upset and called a staff meeting. She explained to me that no volunteer should ever be sent home and that there can never be too many volunteers, just as I figured. She told me that she is working on a few new project, such as events and activities and possibly a tour guide bus, maybe even a trip to Disneyland and such for the families. She said, she would love for me to be a part of it. She also expressed to me that she sees how passionate I am about making a difference, that she is grateful for having me, and that she would pay me back the $50 for the decoration if I give her the receipt, which I dont want back, it was all part of the good deed. She said she will talk to this "person" about it, and that she already forwarded my email to another staff member and that she also apologies. I then agreed to come back and set a schedule to come Thursday, and Tuesday and Wednesday next week. =) So in the end it all worked out! YAY!

Well a few days ago, I went over to one of my best friend Shelly's house, to write a letter to the Israel Federation about a grant and about this project. Of course like always, we got caught up talking about a million other things and so right before we went to sleep, I recorded an audio of her on how I should write it because she is pretty smart cookie and great when it comes to essays. Today I uploaded it onto my computer so that I can begin writing it and as I'm listening and typing, I come across a sentence that she said that didn't make any sense to me, something like "While trying to execute my plan" or something like that. So I thought to myself wait what?!?!? execute? like killing people? I kept replaying it and was so confused, so I typed it into Google, which btw Google is like my spell-check/dictionary lol, so for some odd reason I guess I clicked images! Which was the worstttt idea EVER! I'm honestly the worsttttttttt person when it comes to things like that. I cant handle scary movies, cant handle hearing stories about death or anything that just has to do with death, it freaks me out but I'll explain that another day, but I think it really comes down to me being such a compassionate person and an artist, I can't help but to store these horrid images in my head FOREVER! But yet at the same time, we are humans, and I do have this curious side, maybe because it freaks me out so much. So then I start going through some of the most horrifying images ever!!! and thannn I see an image taken somewhere in South Africa, of a man burning another man to death (you should see my face right now), this poor man is tided down and has a tire around his neck that is on fire, this is called necklacing. OH MY &*$*(&@$*&(@ G*D!!!!!!!! I was seriously mortified!!! I was stunned and still am that such horrid, beyond animalistic, behavior is going on in this world! WTF!?!? Howwww sickkk do you have to be to do such a thing! Sometimes I cant fathom some of the things that go on in this world. I swear to you, after seeing that image, I sat starring into my Microsoft Word document with not a single thing to type. I literally had to go to youtube and look at some happy music videos to get over what I had saw, it didn't help though, I even had a hard time sleeping thinking about it. I have a theory, where I believe that each and every person on this Planet has good to them, some more, some less, but I do strongly preach that and I can't in my right mind figure out how another human being can perform such an act. I guess I'm trying to understand what kind of trauma would cause someone to such a thing, I don't understand....
Do yourself a favor, don't look up that word, ever, in your life.
Well thank G*d for dictionary.com. I guess I already knew that execute also means to accomplish something but I don't why I didn't relate to that meaning when I heard it. I did actually finish the letter after a few hours.

Later on the night I met 3 Military man, who just got back to the US after being gone for 6 month. They were actually in the Air Force, I found out later, which I found interesting since I used to date someone for 3 years that was a Air Force Veteran. One of them showed me a huge scar on his upper left shoulder. He told me that when he was in Afghanistan on duty, that he was riding in a Jeep, where out of no where, the Jeep ran over a bomb and it exploded! Everyone in the Jeep died but him! He told me that the in Afghanistan they have these underground sand hiding spots and they just jumped out of them at you. The moment one of the Afghanistan saw that he was alive, he tried to stab him right in the heart and he blocked it and then his other to friends that I also met, killed him. They were so torn and said that they didn't sign up to kill people and that it was the worst feeling you can ever imagine. Naively I said, "well ya, but that's your job", they all got extremely angry and said there that job is to protect the USA and NOT to KILL ANYONE. I apologized for offending them, that wasn't my intentions. We discussed politics, I was telling them that I was going to Israel on the volunteer program, we talked about the Israeli Army, ect.
One of them freaked me out saying that Iran today said on the news that they are planning to blow up Israel. I really started freaking out thinking about my family that lives there now and my future life there. We left Israel when I was a kid during the Gulf War, because my father was recruited back to the Army. Meanwhile my mom was a 25 year old, sitting in a padded room in our house, with my brother age 4 at the time and me at the age of 7, wearing gas masks, praying to live. There was actually a bomb that exploded a mile away from our home. Til this day, I still remember that disgusting feeling of it on my face and the way it smelled. I know this program will be safe but I can't help in the back of my head to think about it.
My brother and I, in Israel during the Gulf War.

They kept repeating how impressed they were that I had such global and life knowledge at such a young age. They were really good men. I thanked them for being Heroes. My heart really went out to them, all 3 of them told me how miserable they are, that none of them have wives or children because they have been in the Military for over 20 years and no women is willing to live that lifestyle. They really believe that being a soldier is all that they are good at and deserve, it was really sad. I wish they can see that life is beautiful and that there is so much more to the world and themselves then that. I'm so free spirited and live like a Gypsy or a Hippie that I can never understand that world. I mean these poor guys are miserable and they think that there is no way out. I wish I can help turn peoples black into a Rainbow like them, because that's how I view life and I want to inspire more people to see it in my eyes.
My heart and prayers go out to them and all the soldiers all around the world.

“You don't raise heroes, you raise sons. And if you treat them like sons, they'll turn out to be heroes, even if it's just in your own eyes.”

Day 31

YAY 999 visitors views!
That's my favorite number, 99 or 999! Don't guess my password now ;)
Thank you so much for visiting my blog and reading, it really means a lot to me, I know I'm really bad with not writing everyday and then writing 3 blogs in one day, I'm working on that, saaaooorrrrryyy!
Living off of the same schedule as yesterday today.
I did today get to work on more forms for the Program! I cant believe that in a month from now I'll be living in Israel! I find it scary and yet exciting!
I also got a chance to write Jennifer a message, telling her what had happened on Friday and that I took it personal. I explained to her that I wasn't volunteering because I needed social worker's hours or a school project, that I was doing this because I wanted to truly make a difference for people in need. I explained to her that although I really wanted to make the commitment of helping at the RMH, that I dont think it will work out, but I had a pleasure working with her and that she is great. Because quite honestly all this mess wasn't her, I really like her, she is great!
I'm boring today, that's all I got for ya!

“We have no right to ask when a sorrow comes, 'Why did this happen to me?' unless we ask the same question for every joy that comes our way.”

Day 30

Honestly it's been nuts trying to keep up with myself =)
Today I went to work once again at Salt Chalet from 10am-7pm and then to my other job from 8pm-1am.
Working at Salt Chalet I really feel as though it's beneficial to humanity. Today I signed up a 3 year old kid with a serious case of Asthma, a long with a 12 year boy with Psoriasis, which btw I'm not quite sure why its spelled with a P? oooh the English language lol. So I really do feel like I'm making a difference. I swear to you, I think these Salt Rooms are just magic! How amazing is it that we have a natural form of healing our breathing and skin by sitting in a room made out of salt with breathing it! AKA *MAGIC*

On a different note, I didn't realize how much paperwork I really need for this Volunteer Program, I mean from Resume, Program Regulations, Safety & Security, picking a Host Families, Passport Information, Emergency Contacts, Health History, Arrival Information, sending a photo of myself and another security deposit check, bank statements, notarized letter, providing references, phone plan, faxing forms, I mean the list basically doesn't end and then of course there is all the other personal things I need to take care of such as flight, my storage, my cell phone plan here, writing letters for grants, I mean honestly its just one big circus, =) but I like it! I think it seems a bit overwhelming because I signed for the Program pretty late and I have to have all of this done by Feb.8th, which is less than a week, meanwhile most of the other people signed up to this program months ago. But on the other end of the scale, I'm crazy EXCITED!!!! I work best under pressure! weeeeeeeee =)

“Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.”