We welcome our newest inspirational guest author, Kathy O'Leary! Thank you, Kathy, for your submission to your blog.
Kathy was born and raised in Chicago and considers herself to be the "ultimate city girl". She received her education at DePaul University and The Institute of Broadcast Arts. Kathy began her career in broadcasting and moved into event planning and production. She then tweaked her career path a bit and moved to the "hotel" side of the hospitality business. She is a new author with a book due out very soon. Kathy's life-mantra is to squeeze the joy of every second of each and every day, treat everyone kindly and smile.
This recession, and all it implies, has taken our already overstressed population and added new layers of concern, fright and even panic. I've had many restless nights and interrupted sleep thinking about all of the "what if's."
It's during these times I remember I have come from a family of very emotionally strong women. My maternal grandparents ran a farm in Wisconsin. My grandmother gave birth to 16 children. Two of them died within their first year but she still had 14 children to raise. Shortly after Granny gave birth to her last child, my Grandfather took ill and died. There she was with all of those children (some of them just babies) to raise and a very big farm to run. Talk about pressure and stress. Granny displayed lovely courage throughout it all.
My mother, as one of those 14 children, did not have a "cushy" life. She and her siblings had their chores to do before school and after school and there was no negotiation about this. Granny had to be extremely strict to keep things running, to keep their livelihood going. However, mom had a wonderful life with my dad and after his passing, we made certain we included her in everything. We had a lot of fun with my mom until one day 8 years ago, things changed. Mom began a long battle with heart problems, kidney problems and heartbreaking lung problems. She fought her battle with dignity while always remaining a lady. Being with her every day, I witnessed first hand how she struggled to breathe and how very difficult those last months were. I realized that I was not only watching my mother die but watching her displaying lovely courage.
Now as I struggle to maintain and keep abreast during these most difficult times I am reminded of these two beautiful steel magnolias and how they displayed lovely courage. Remembering this gives me the strength that I need. When you have those frightening recession feelings, think back on those family members of yours that displayed beautiful courage and find your strength. Take your family's courage to the next generation.
I hope you liked this article and found inspiration in Kathy's words. Think about your own family's story... what values were passed down to you? What values will you pass to your children?