I'm struggling with finding enough time for myself these days. In the hustle and bustle of life in the nation's capital, I find that I become quickly and all-too-easily stretched too thin. I've written before about how I want it all. I want to excel in the workplace and pour my time and energy into learning as much as I can during and outside of work hours. There is only so much time one can spend listening to and analyzing the news. I want to have a family. There. I said it. The idea of being one part of a whole with somebody, being so strong together that we can conquer the world. I want someone who believes in me so deeply that to him, I have no limits. And I want to reciprocate that belief in him. I get to hang out with a little 9-month old baby at softball on Thursdays, and it's giving me the itch. What's it like to shift around life things to accommodate the arrival of a cute little pants-pooper? But I also want to be by myself. I want to be free to have a crazy schedule and not try to work it around someone else's. I want to go for a swim at 7pm, not get home until 930pm, eat dinner at 10pm, shower at 10:45pm, and curl up into bed by midnight and not think anything of it except pleased for not having spent the night in front of the TV. I want to have a 2-hour long phone call with my mom followed immediately thereafter by a 1-hour long phone call with my best friend and not have anyone else's day halted because of it. I want to spend half of a Saturday in a coffee shop with a book, a journal, a pen, some note cards and stamps, and time to contemplate life. I still want to prove to myself that I am capable of making a ton of money and supporting my life goals and my family. But I want more to just do something that feels right. I want to keep working on enjoying the little pieces of life's beauty that are all around me all the time. I want to make wishes on dandelions and eyelashes. I want to stop to watch the sun set and to smell the roses. I want to volunteer my time because I can't volunteer my money. I want to help people. I want to love people. I want to be loved by people.
The funny thing about life is that we can't have it all. So where do I compromise? Looks like I need to take myself out to coffee on a Saturday morning to contemplate this...
love always,
E
Friday, June 27, 2014
Friday, June 20, 2014
The G. Michael Perry Memorial Softball Tournament for Special Olympics Wyoming
I just posted on Facebook about something near and dear to me, and then I thought "Hey! I have a blog! Maybe my 4 readers will want to know about this, too!" So here's a little bit about what the
Mike Perry Tournament is and why it's important, not only to me but for
the Special Olympians in Wyoming...
For those of you who haven't known me long, when I was a sophomore in high school, my dad passed away. He'd undergone a heart transplant in 1990, and I got a bonus 11 years with him because of that. He was my little league coach for our all-girls team The Angels (none of us throw like girls and we all play harder than you). If I wasn't careful, I'd get cornered on the couch with him and a HUGE baseball encyclopedia, listening to him elaborate for hours on the stats of the Greats.
I also am lucky to have two incredible siblings. My older sister, Allison, has Down Syndrome. She was also coached by the one and only Mike Perry, and she also doesn't throw like a girl . After we moved to Wyoming in 1999, she had the opportunity to get involved in Special Olympics Wyoming. Not only has she worked for them as their Receptionist/Office Assistant for over 10 years(!) but she is an athlete as well, competing in bowling, swimming, basketball, and, until the early 2000's, softball. My dad coached the Special Olympics softball team and got a huge kick of the tenacity, skill, and enthusiasm of the players.
Due to budgetary restrictions, SOW dropped softball from its program. This left a gaping hole in the sports schedule for athletes. From May until October, there are no opportunities to practice sports and be active.
So, in 2008, I founded the first G. Michael Perry Memorial Tournament for Special Olympics Wyoming. Teams from all over the state practice all summer for a one-day tournament in August. The tournament is double-elimination style and includes individual skills competition for those players for whom team play isn't ideal. People from the community volunteer their time as umpires, scorekeepers, BBQers (mmmm the hot dogs!), and cheerleaders. Families get to cheer on their players. Teammates get to encourage one another. But most importantly, these athletes are moving, competing, and having fun.
My description of this event does not do justice to the feeling in the air on the day of the tournament. The GMP might seem like a small thing, but it is a great thing.
It costs approximately $2,000 to host the tournament each year. The Perry Family hosts the event, and relies on the generosity of sponsors and donors like you. Whatever is not covered by donations comes out-of-pocket from yours truly It's uncomfortable for me to ask you all to give to an event you don't directly benefit from and that you might not ever get to be a part of (unless you're in Casper, and then WE NEED VOLUNTEERS!). I understand how much money $20 can be, and that it's just not possible sometimes to give to everyone who asks.
So here's what I'm asking from you: If you can and would donate by either purchasing a t-shirt or by making a donation on the FirstGiving page, please do! If you cannot, please leave a comment or email me with encouraging words for our athletes. I'd like to print that in this year's bulletin so that they can see that people all over the country are cheering for them! Time and encouragement are equally as important as money.
Thanks for reading my charity manifesto! The tournament is on August 23, 2014 this year! The links are below:
https://www.booster.com/mikeperry2014
http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/playball/mikeperry
T-shirts are on sale only through Sunday, June 22, but the FirstGiving page will be open until the day of the tournament.
Love always,
E
For those of you who haven't known me long, when I was a sophomore in high school, my dad passed away. He'd undergone a heart transplant in 1990, and I got a bonus 11 years with him because of that. He was my little league coach for our all-girls team The Angels (none of us throw like girls and we all play harder than you). If I wasn't careful, I'd get cornered on the couch with him and a HUGE baseball encyclopedia, listening to him elaborate for hours on the stats of the Greats.
I also am lucky to have two incredible siblings. My older sister, Allison, has Down Syndrome. She was also coached by the one and only Mike Perry, and she also doesn't throw like a girl . After we moved to Wyoming in 1999, she had the opportunity to get involved in Special Olympics Wyoming. Not only has she worked for them as their Receptionist/Office Assistant for over 10 years(!) but she is an athlete as well, competing in bowling, swimming, basketball, and, until the early 2000's, softball. My dad coached the Special Olympics softball team and got a huge kick of the tenacity, skill, and enthusiasm of the players.
Due to budgetary restrictions, SOW dropped softball from its program. This left a gaping hole in the sports schedule for athletes. From May until October, there are no opportunities to practice sports and be active.
So, in 2008, I founded the first G. Michael Perry Memorial Tournament for Special Olympics Wyoming. Teams from all over the state practice all summer for a one-day tournament in August. The tournament is double-elimination style and includes individual skills competition for those players for whom team play isn't ideal. People from the community volunteer their time as umpires, scorekeepers, BBQers (mmmm the hot dogs!), and cheerleaders. Families get to cheer on their players. Teammates get to encourage one another. But most importantly, these athletes are moving, competing, and having fun.
My description of this event does not do justice to the feeling in the air on the day of the tournament. The GMP might seem like a small thing, but it is a great thing.
It costs approximately $2,000 to host the tournament each year. The Perry Family hosts the event, and relies on the generosity of sponsors and donors like you. Whatever is not covered by donations comes out-of-pocket from yours truly It's uncomfortable for me to ask you all to give to an event you don't directly benefit from and that you might not ever get to be a part of (unless you're in Casper, and then WE NEED VOLUNTEERS!). I understand how much money $20 can be, and that it's just not possible sometimes to give to everyone who asks.
So here's what I'm asking from you: If you can and would donate by either purchasing a t-shirt or by making a donation on the FirstGiving page, please do! If you cannot, please leave a comment or email me with encouraging words for our athletes. I'd like to print that in this year's bulletin so that they can see that people all over the country are cheering for them! Time and encouragement are equally as important as money.
Thanks for reading my charity manifesto! The tournament is on August 23, 2014 this year! The links are below:
https://www.booster.com/mikeperry2014
http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/playball/mikeperry
T-shirts are on sale only through Sunday, June 22, but the FirstGiving page will be open until the day of the tournament.
Love always,
E
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)