From my friend Pat Finn: A while back at the Seattle Special Olympics, nine contestants, all physically or mentally disabled, assembled at the starting line for the 100 yard dash.
At the gun, they all started out, not exactly in a dash, but with a determination to run the race to the finish and win. All, that is, except one boy who stumbled on the asphalt, tumbled over a couple of times and began to cry. The other eight heard the boy. They slowed down and looked back. They all turned around and went back. Every one of them. One girl with Down's syndrome bent down and kissed him and said," This will make it better." All nine linked arms and walked across the finish line together. Everyone in the stadium stood, and the cheering went on for several minutes. People who were there are still telling the story. Why?
Because deep down we know one thing:
What matters most in this life is more than winning for
ourselves. What truly matters in this life is helping others win.
I was going to comment on this, but it stands by itself. Have a great day! -B
PS. Look for a miracle today
Showing posts with label transformation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label transformation. Show all posts
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Letting go
There is a term used by certain 12-step programs (and no, I don't know this from personal experience or reference) that I used to say to my friends when they were really stressed out and they needed some comedic relief: Let go, Let God! It is a funny saying if you are not particularly religious - it's like whispering "Just say no to drugs" to your brother while you are experiencing a tirade of some sort from your parents. It's said tongue in cheek. But I'm starting to change my tune about Let go, Let God.
Over the course of the last couple of years, and even more over the last several months, I have begun to believe that amazing things can be accomplished by just letting go. Deeprok Chopra talks about letting go in terms of money - that the flow of money is like that of a river and you must let go a bit to let the river run its course. In the myriad of books out today on the Laws of Attraction, letting go of certain lifelong mantras and having some faith in the universe creates the opportunity to attract life-affirming elements.
In terms of running a business, I find that when one "lets go" of complete control, a space develops where growth opportunities emerge and leaders step up to guide the ship. It's one of the most powerful experiences to see a young protege step up his/her game and claim ownership of an agenda, a meeting, a project. It is actually rather heady. I read the following quote recently:
A true leader is not the one with the most followers, but one who creates the most leaders. ~Neale Donald Walsch
This happens when you "let go, let God." Try it. I promise you'll like what happens.
-Brian
Over the course of the last couple of years, and even more over the last several months, I have begun to believe that amazing things can be accomplished by just letting go. Deeprok Chopra talks about letting go in terms of money - that the flow of money is like that of a river and you must let go a bit to let the river run its course. In the myriad of books out today on the Laws of Attraction, letting go of certain lifelong mantras and having some faith in the universe creates the opportunity to attract life-affirming elements.
In terms of running a business, I find that when one "lets go" of complete control, a space develops where growth opportunities emerge and leaders step up to guide the ship. It's one of the most powerful experiences to see a young protege step up his/her game and claim ownership of an agenda, a meeting, a project. It is actually rather heady. I read the following quote recently:
A true leader is not the one with the most followers, but one who creates the most leaders. ~Neale Donald Walsch
This happens when you "let go, let God." Try it. I promise you'll like what happens.
-Brian
Monday, May 14, 2007
Great lines
From Joe the Barber in Lost in Woonsocket, after giving Normand a blessing ring that says "Love": "Remember to hold this when you think that no one loves you and remember that God loves you and I do, too."
Also from Joe, this time to Mark, who has fallen off the wagon and is on the way to yet another detox center: "Instead of picking up a bottle, pick up a phone and call someone who loves you."
There were countless more but these two are my favorites. There is a very thin line between success and failure and the difference is usually wrapped up in faith.
-Brian
Also from Joe, this time to Mark, who has fallen off the wagon and is on the way to yet another detox center: "Instead of picking up a bottle, pick up a phone and call someone who loves you."
There were countless more but these two are my favorites. There is a very thin line between success and failure and the difference is usually wrapped up in faith.
-Brian
Sunday, May 13, 2007
SRO Screening
Flew in today from our screening in Woonsocket and as I expected, I was deeply moved by the entire experience. First, the venue: The Stadium Theater, built in 1926, has been beautifully restored to its original gorgeous design and boasts a sound system that rivals the sound of any major movie theatre in the country. There are only 4 full-time staff members - the entire operation runs like a well-oiled machine with the help and support of about 200 volunteers. And what phenomenal folks they all are! Other companies could learn quite a few things from the customer service provided by the volunteers and staff in this fine Theater. But this is just one of the many incredible experiences from this weekend.
The coincidences: The story behind the story of Lost in Woonsocket includes many coincidences that kept pushing the momentum, even when odds were stacked against best intentions. The filmmakers turned off the freeway because they thought "Woonsocket" sounded like a cool name for a city. On the way to detox, the guys found Normand "by chance" in a parking lot after looking for him for several hours. The crew found a local barber on the way to detox who "happened" to be a recovering alcoholic himself, 27 years sober. And the list goes on.
And I got to experience it myself....Before the credits roll at the end of "LIW," the epilogue explains that Normand is over 12 months sober and that Mark had slipped and had been in and out of detox 5 times since the A&E series ended, and had returned to the streets. Pastor Brian Souza of the Matthew 25 Center of Hope had heard that Mark was intending to come to the screening and the consensus was that if he came, he would most likely have been drinking and would make a scene. Frankly, nobody knew where he was going through detox and if he was even going to show up at the screening at all. And then God winked. On Friday, our first full day in Woonsocket, our first order of business was to go to the theater and meet the delivery of the projection equipment. After waiting for several hours, we did what any normal group of people would do with some spare time on the east coast - we headed off for the local Dunkin' Donuts for some coffee and donuts. But, even though Woonsocket is a small town, it has one-way streets that don't run parallel and after 20 minutes, ironically, we found ourselves lost - Lost in Woonsocket! So we stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts down the street from the Theater - not even the original store we had been in search of and as we came out of the store, who should we see standing out front? MARK! He had been in town only 20 minutes from detox and he was clean and committed to attending the show Saturday night. And he did! To a rousing standing ovation at the end of the screening.
The event: The screening started at 7:00 in front of a standing-room-only crowd of more than 1,100. The marketing campaign led by Alan Neville and his team at Crossroads resulted in several newspaper articles and local news pieces, leading to a successful sell-out. The crowd was anxious and abuzz, their expectations for a great show pushed to the limit when news leaked out that Rhode Island Congressman Patrick Kennedy was in attendance. Alan Neville and Pastor Brian introduced the evening and invited John onto the stage to welcome the crowd and kick off the show. The audience reacted warmly to the story, laughing and crying in all of the right places. At the end of the show, John came out on stage with Pastor Brian, Joe the Barber and the new local celebrity and focal point of the movie, Normand Cartier. The crowd gave Normand a standing ovation and another when he pointed out his family, standing from their front row seats. And still another when Mark was invited to join the crew up on stage.
We sold over 150 DVDs, collecting several hundred dollars for Crossroads and Matthew 25 Center for Hope. Those sales, along with ticket sales and donations, helped make this a tremendous fundraising effort as well as a true community event. Overall, it was a magical night! Thank you, Woonsocket family, for kicking off this humanitarian movement with your generosity, love and support. I couldn't have predicted this kind of experience when we started this adventure 3.5 years ago.
The coincidences: The story behind the story of Lost in Woonsocket includes many coincidences that kept pushing the momentum, even when odds were stacked against best intentions. The filmmakers turned off the freeway because they thought "Woonsocket" sounded like a cool name for a city. On the way to detox, the guys found Normand "by chance" in a parking lot after looking for him for several hours. The crew found a local barber on the way to detox who "happened" to be a recovering alcoholic himself, 27 years sober. And the list goes on.
And I got to experience it myself....Before the credits roll at the end of "LIW," the epilogue explains that Normand is over 12 months sober and that Mark had slipped and had been in and out of detox 5 times since the A&E series ended, and had returned to the streets. Pastor Brian Souza of the Matthew 25 Center of Hope had heard that Mark was intending to come to the screening and the consensus was that if he came, he would most likely have been drinking and would make a scene. Frankly, nobody knew where he was going through detox and if he was even going to show up at the screening at all. And then God winked. On Friday, our first full day in Woonsocket, our first order of business was to go to the theater and meet the delivery of the projection equipment. After waiting for several hours, we did what any normal group of people would do with some spare time on the east coast - we headed off for the local Dunkin' Donuts for some coffee and donuts. But, even though Woonsocket is a small town, it has one-way streets that don't run parallel and after 20 minutes, ironically, we found ourselves lost - Lost in Woonsocket! So we stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts down the street from the Theater - not even the original store we had been in search of and as we came out of the store, who should we see standing out front? MARK! He had been in town only 20 minutes from detox and he was clean and committed to attending the show Saturday night. And he did! To a rousing standing ovation at the end of the screening.
The event: The screening started at 7:00 in front of a standing-room-only crowd of more than 1,100. The marketing campaign led by Alan Neville and his team at Crossroads resulted in several newspaper articles and local news pieces, leading to a successful sell-out. The crowd was anxious and abuzz, their expectations for a great show pushed to the limit when news leaked out that Rhode Island Congressman Patrick Kennedy was in attendance. Alan Neville and Pastor Brian introduced the evening and invited John onto the stage to welcome the crowd and kick off the show. The audience reacted warmly to the story, laughing and crying in all of the right places. At the end of the show, John came out on stage with Pastor Brian, Joe the Barber and the new local celebrity and focal point of the movie, Normand Cartier. The crowd gave Normand a standing ovation and another when he pointed out his family, standing from their front row seats. And still another when Mark was invited to join the crew up on stage.
We sold over 150 DVDs, collecting several hundred dollars for Crossroads and Matthew 25 Center for Hope. Those sales, along with ticket sales and donations, helped make this a tremendous fundraising effort as well as a true community event. Overall, it was a magical night! Thank you, Woonsocket family, for kicking off this humanitarian movement with your generosity, love and support. I couldn't have predicted this kind of experience when we started this adventure 3.5 years ago.
Friday, May 04, 2007
Lost in Woonsocket revisited
On the front page of today's Providence Journal, the daily newspaper in Rhode Island, is an article on the upcoming screening of Lost in Woonsocket on May 12. An excerpt:
The great thing about spirituality and transformation is its viral nature - natural viral expansion, not like the impersonal electronic kind that Internet 2.0 propagates, but more traditional and community-oriented and personal, with real tears, real hugs and real connection.
I am flying to Rhode Island next week to attend the screening with the expectation that I will get to experience this transformation first-hand and I am convinced that the world will be improved ever so slightly by this gathering. I have a feeling that Woonsocket will never be the same again. I already know that I won't be.
If we all did one thing to try to make this world a better place, it would, by the very attempt, become one. Isn't that the kind of world we want to leave to our children and grandchildren?
-Brian
Our story starts in a tent in the woods of Woonsocket.
Here, Normand Cartier lives -- homeless, alcoholic and disconnected from his
family.
Fast forward two years. The story gets better.
Cartier's on a plane. He's flying to Texas, California, Florida and Iowa. He's attending film festivals and speaking to crowds that invariably rise to their feet, fight back tears, and applaud -- not necessarily for what Cartier says, but for what he does: simply show up.
The great thing about spirituality and transformation is its viral nature - natural viral expansion, not like the impersonal electronic kind that Internet 2.0 propagates, but more traditional and community-oriented and personal, with real tears, real hugs and real connection.
I am flying to Rhode Island next week to attend the screening with the expectation that I will get to experience this transformation first-hand and I am convinced that the world will be improved ever so slightly by this gathering. I have a feeling that Woonsocket will never be the same again. I already know that I won't be.
If we all did one thing to try to make this world a better place, it would, by the very attempt, become one. Isn't that the kind of world we want to leave to our children and grandchildren?
-Brian
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