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Holidays; Sharing Your Time Can Be a Valuable Gift

During the holidays I enjoy participating in get togethers with family and friends. I am aware not everyone has family or friends nearby. Also, some people believe they are too busy to share time with others and prefer to be alone. I feel one should participate unselfishly with others if given the opportunity. Over the past few years I have lost many loved ones and am grateful I was able to be with them sharing memories when I had a chance to.

During this time of the year we have many opportunities to share our self with others. For example, for the people in the US we recently had Thanksgiving. We also have Christmas, Hanukkah and New Years among many other holidays.

If your special holiday traditions involve the purchase of gifts, I understand some wish to participate in such However I believe a gift of sharing yourself can be more valuable than any store purchased gift.

I am aware of the value of assistance and sharing because of the many challenges my wife, Kathy, and I attempt to overcome daily. I use to do all the driving when I had eyesight. Now that I am blind and can no longer drive and my wife does not feel comfortable driving on freeways traveling is difficult. Not having the option to drive introduces unique challenges when Kathy is sick and I need to bring her to the doctors, get medicine for us or do grocery shopping. Repairing/maintaining minor things around the house is challenging and extremely time consuming. Reading my postal mail and responding to correspondence is also difficult for me.

Why We Have New Obstacles We Are Grateful To Overcome:

On May 26, 1999 I had become critically ill and went into the hospital. I spent seven months in the hospital, in which three of the months I was in a coma.  I returned home from the hospital on December 28, 1999. We received medical bills totaling over one million dollars which caused Kathy and I to address several challenges. When we received the medical bills at this stage in my recovery I was in bed and could not get out without assistance. Unfortunately at the same time the landlord raised our rent.  Also we no longer had medical coverage due to exceeding the limits of the insurance policy.  Therefor we were on our own to pay any remaining costs out of pocket.

Despite these difficulties, the alternative of my dying during my hospitalization would have been far worse.   

I am grateful to be able to say I survived so I can share my time with others and enjoy life and all the difficulties it presents at times. Even though my life has changed forever when I hear the song by Barbra Streisand,  “The Way We Were”, it reminds me of the way it used to be.

I am happy my wife Kathy and I were able to uphold our wedding vows we committed to each other on June 14, 1987 which are noted below and to continue to give each other the best gift of all.

I (name), take you (name), for my lawful wedded wife/husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part. 

I am grateful I have the opportunity to work in my profession long hours at times with little downtime even through some weekends. Despite the challenges my wife Kathy and I continually face and somehow overcome I still try to find time to provide my gift of helping others.  Examples are being a mentor, helping to increase accessibility/usability in my workplace, helping drive inclusion and helping others in my community.

Below are some suggestions on how an individual can share time with others as well as demonstrate gratefulness. 

Examples of Valuable Gifts from My Wife Kathy, Family and Others:

  • I am grateful Kathy did not take the advice of others and leave me when I was in the hospital during my seven month stay. This gift enabled us to continue on our life journey sharing life’s experiences together.
  • I am grateful Kathy did not accept the advice of the hospital personnel of sending me to a rehabilitation facility far away from family and friends when I ran out of insurance after being in the hospital for seven months. She gave me the loving gift by taking me home to provide  some rehabilitation herself which also enabled me to connect with local organizations to further assist me instead of my being isolated in some far-off location.
  • I am grateful my dad provided the gift of building me a standing frame from plans he got from one of our local hospitals. This enabled my wife Kathy to work with me daily at home using this device along with the other required therapy.  Although most doctors thought I would never walk again, using this standing frame with other therapy eventually enabled me to walk again with the assistance of two canes, one support cane and one long white cane for navigation.  
  • I am grateful after I got home from the hospital in December of 1999 for some family members, a co- worker and others who came over to provide the gift of assistance.
  • I am grateful after having a total hip replacement in 2013 Kathy provided the gift of bringing me home to help me perform  the required rehabilitation which enabled me to recover and heal at home instead of sending me to a rehabilitation center.
  • I am grateful I have Kathy to provide gifts all year long such as maintaining our home, our yard, our car as well as doing the finances, cooking delicious meals and all of the other things she does daily from sunrise to well past sunset, occasionally taking some time off for herself.
  • I am grateful that Kathy decorates our home for the holidays sharing the gift of enjoyment and holiday traditions for all who are able to experience the holiday wonderland.  This environment spreads the happiness and cheer that goes with creating a festive and loving environment.
  • I am grateful to have received the gift of positivity and prayers from many people all around the world to assist me in coming out of my coma and surviving my critical medical condition.

Other Examples of Valuable Gifts:

  • I am grateful for the gift of assistive technology. When I went blind this technology enabled me to retain my job after a lot of training and commitment to re-skilling myself.
  • Give the gift of your personal companionship by spending time with others to help decrease loneliness and promote happiness.
  • Offer your gift of experience, time and expertise to help people in your workplace, non-profit organizations, neighborhood, your community and other places around the world who can benefit from your skills and knowledge.
  • Provide the gift of assisting the less fortunate, the disabled, the elderly or those who are in need so as to help increase optimism and self-esteem as well as helping them with tasks they cannot do themselves.
  • Provide the gift of knowledge by teaching, mentoring and give guidance to people in your personal and professional life to help in order to share educational opportunities.
  • If in your professional life you are in direct contact with customers you should provide the gift of treating them with respect and caring like you should do for everyone.
  • If you work in an organization or business and are able to develop programs to assist employees or customers with challenges or disabilities in the work-place or customer facing products or services you can provide a unique gift by launching programs to assist these employees and customers to be more self-sufficient.
  • One can provide the gift of inclusion and equal access by developing and promoting accessible and usable web pages, applications and devices.  This practice can help increase inclusion and reduce exclusion.

These gifts I have listed are equally reciprocal as gifts to yourself. When you give the gift of yourself there are others that receive your gifts through the people you touch.  One other side benefit of providing such gifts is that you will never know who you may have helped from your generosity and caring.

Do you have any suggestions on how to share unselfishly and celebrate holidays while helping others? Can you provide ideas as to how to have time to help the less fortunate, the elderly or the disabled? Do you have any stories to share to help us all learn the benefits of providing the gift of assisting others in need while increasing happiness?

We all look forward to hearing your valuable thoughts and comments.

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year and can find some time to create happiness for others!!

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

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December 04, 2018 in Accessibility, Disabilities, Inclusion, Inspiration, Leadership, People with Disabilities, Personal Development | Permalink | Comments (0)

Perseverance to Survive an Extreme Blizzard in the Wilderness at Lucky Dog

While lying on my back in my sleeping bag in the wilderness approximately 1.5 - 2 miles away from the closest small town I was cold and exhausted. Attempting to sleep occasional snowflakes would fall onto my eyelids. During the night I kept a plastic water bottle filled with snow snuggled against my body and prayed my body heat would melt the snow in the water bottle enabling me to quench my dire thirst. In the morning I attempted to drink from the water bottle and unfortunately found no water. I was very disappointed to discover none of the snow melted after enduring an uncomfortable sleepless night with a cold snow filled water bottle huddled next to me. With anticipation I planned my next actions that morning.

My story is from my recollection with some very much appreciated feedback from three of my friends who participated in this trip with me.

Planning a Cross Country Ski Trip Vacation

I had the opportunity to go cross country skiing a couple of years after graduating high school in April of 1982. I planned this trip during an early spring break from college and a vacation from work. Having never skied before I believed this would be an enjoyable and challenging vacation and was very much looking forward to getting away. I planned this trip with two of my friends, Stan and Terry. Our plan was to meet three other friends Tom, Pat and John at our destination Lucky Dog. A few of us were familiar with Lucky Dog since we had been camping at this location over holiday weekends for years. We planned to bring backpacks filled with enough food and supplies to last a week. In preparation for the trip each of us went shopping for a variety of delicious food. Stan, Terry and I planned on sleeping in a somewhat large old wooden barn approximately 15 feet x 25 feet with a ridgeline of about 14 feet that was present at our destination in many past trips. This barn was at the Sandusky Mine, at the confluence of Lucky Dog and Sandusky Creeks. Tom, Pat and John may have had this same idea of using the barn as shelter. We thought even if the weather was bad this barn would provide adequate protection.

What is and Where is Lucky Dog

Lucky Dog is an old gold mine that was no longer in production near Lucky Dog creek. Lucky Dog is in the gold country of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California. The closest town is Forest City which had a population of 13 at the time of our trip. There were only a few houses and no stores on the one very small main road this town had. The closest town with a store was Allegheny which is approximately 6 miles from Lucky Dog. Besides the few houses in Forest City there was an old spooky looking graveyard on a hill overlooking the town. Most of the tomb stones were falling over they were so old. A lot of the people who were buried at this graveyard were buried during the gold rush days when the town was more populated.

Ready for Some Enjoyment and Relaxation

After renting skis, ski boots, and ski poles, completing our shopping and packing we were now ready for enjoyment and relaxation. On the morning we left for our trip I said goodbye to my then girlfriend and now wife Kathy.

Stan, Terry and I took Stan’s car on this trip. It was a 1967 red Alfa Romeo GTV. We loaded our 3 fully packed backpacks, 3 sets of skis, all 3 of us (Stan-driver, Terry and me) plus other needed supplies into this small sports car. We were a little cramped as we traveled although nobody complained.

Finally on the Road

When we left on April 1st it had been snowing in the higher elevations prior to our trip. Although it had snowed in the high elevations we were a bit concerned that we would not have enough snow to go skiing since the elevation of our destination was approximately 4000 to 5000 feet above sea level. After a few hours on the road we were excited that we were now in the Sierra Nevada Mountain range and getting closer to our destination. As the road climbed in elevation we were not able to see any snow which added to our anxiety that there would not be enough snow to ski on. At one point on Highway 49 near the bridge over the South Fork of the Yuba River we found a huge automobile sized boulder in the middle of the road. We had to maneuver around this boulder that must have slid off the mountain side.

When we were approximately 20 miles away from our destination it started snowing lightly. Now that it was snowing we laughed with joy as we anticipated the fun we were going to have. As we got closer to our destination it continued snowing harder and harder. We eventually needed to put on our tire chains to help with our car’s traction. Shortly after we turned off the road we were on and started down a narrower road we could hardly see the road since it was covered in deeper snow. The falling snow also obscured our vision requiring us to drive slower.

By this time the road had narrowed significantly due to the distance to any main roads and towns. Now that we were getting further out into the secluded wilderness we no longer passed other cars on the road. The trees that surrounded the road were covered in snow making our travel through this winter wonderland very scenic. We were now getting very close to our destination and we all became very quiet because we were a bit anxious, or at least I was due to the increasing darkness and the additional falling snow. It was very difficult to see around any corners on this very windy and narrow mountain road. As we attempted to stay in the middle of the road we ultimately plowed our car very gently into a snow bank. Luckily where the car rested was close enough to our planned starting destination and it seemed to mostly be off the road therefor we left the car parked there.

We Had Arrived at Forest City

With our delay driving in the hazardous snow conditions it was now almost dark. When we looked around to orient ourselves we could see our friend’s car ahead of us partially covered in snow parked near a snow bank. Since at the time of this trip in 1982 cell phones were not generally used nor did any of us have one therefor we could not call our friends to let them know where we were or ask them where they were.

Since we had reached the location where we would transition to skis we got out of the car and stretched our legs which felt nice. After some quick stretching we put on our jackets, backpacks, gloves, hats, skis and gators for those who had them. My backpack was very heavy on this trip because I did not bring the usual freeze-dried food, so instead I brought real good food, not wanting to skimp on more appetizing meals. This food increased my backpack weight for I generally only bring freeze dried food if I was going on a larger organized trip. Before we left the car during our final packing we found we had a slight problem since we did not have enough room in any of our backpacks for the rain fly. We decided to leave the rain fly behind since we were going to ski to a location with a barn that we planned to use as our shelter.

Time to Go Cross Country Skiing

Now that we all had our skis and backpacks on it felt nice to start skiing to the barn in the ankle-deep snow. We skied in the dark by moon and star light. With the snow falling we could not actually see the moon or stars, although we could see how the light made the snow glow brightly all around us as it fell. This glowing reflective whiteness combined with darkness enabled us to travel without the need of any flashlights or other unnatural light sources.

To get to our destination we turned off the main road our car was on and crossed a small bridge that went over a creek that connected to a dirt road. Once we started down the snow-covered dirt road we quickly found the snow was much deeper, maybe because nobody had cleared the snow from this dirt road. We also realized this cross-country ski trip would not be easy. By now the snow was falling harder and harder. Occasionally we would have white outs where we needed to stop skiing since we could not see our hands in front of our faces. When the white outs would occur an earie, silence came over our group. Each time they would occur I would pray they would not go on forever. Luckily each time a white out occurred it did not last too long and after each one ended we were able to continue.

We were also fortunate the winds were not blowing too strongly and the snow-covered road we were traveling on was relatively level. On one side of the snow-covered dirt road was a very steep drop off in which we did not want to get too close to in case the snow gave way causing us to fall off the road into the darkness below. If one of us did fall down over the edge it would be next to impossible for that person to climb back to the road through the deep snow. The other side of the snow-covered road was a steep mountain covered in snow with an occasional snow-covered tree sticking out of it.

As we traveled very slowly through the deep snow, we wondered if an avalanche would occur and possibly bury us or knock us over the steep edge. We did not talk much during our travels to save our energy. Plus, we feared when we were next to the steep snow-covered mountainside the sounds of our voices would cause an avalanche by the reverberations. When we did talk our voices were somewhat muffled due to the falling snow above us and the deep snow below us.

Blizzard Intensifying

As the storm intensified and we traveled further away from our car the snow continued to get deeper and deeper.

Since this was my first time cross country skiing and skiing of any type I was having difficulty. I soon fell over in the deep snow and sunk into the soft powder far below the level I had been skiing on. With my heavy backpack on and no solid footing I struggled with all of my might to stand up again in this powdery snow. I compared this experience to getting out of quicksand although I had just heard about how difficult it is to get out of. In my desperate struggles I could not take off my heavy backpack to allow me to stand because it would sink in the deep powder. I was also not sure anyone could have pulled my backpack out of the deep powder. My friends could not reach down to give me a hand to help me up fearing they would fall as well, which could cause me to sink deeper into the snow. I struggled some more with all of my might and eventually pulled myself up to my skis. I fell a couple more times shortly after that and vowed to never fall again. The amount of energy exerted attempting to get up again was not worth falling.

Soon our ski tracks were so deep we could not easily get out of them. The person leading the group used the most energy since they had to plow through the very deep powder to make the tracks for the rest of us to follow. To give the leader a rest we would rotate duties at leading.

At one point in our trek a small mouse came running down the snow-covered road. It took a turn and unfortunately fell into our deep ski tracks. Due to the deep track it could not climb out. Stan tried to help the mouse by picking it up with his basket on the ski tip pole and gently flung it out of the track. To our astonishment and sadness this extremely light mouse fell into the snow and sunk out of sight. As we continued we thought this mouse would eventually climb back to the surface of the snow.

We Found Our Friends

Hours passed and we all wished we were at the barn or could find our friends Tom, Pat and John in the snow storm.

As we rounded the next bend in the road through the darkness and falling snow we could see a snow-covered tent in the middle of the road. With excitement we found it to be our friends. They were also happy to see us. They explained the storm had become too severe for them to see in the whiteout conditions and since neither of them had ever been to the barn they were concerned they would never find it so they stayed in the middle of the road hoping to have us come along. They offered to squeeze us into their tent with them to spend the night.

We thought we were about half way to our destination of the barn which could provide adequate shelter therefore we turned down their offer to stay with them. Before we left Tom, Pat and John told us they would meet us at the barn in the morning.

Many more hours passed as we ploughed through the very deep powder with the snow storm continuing to intensify.

Most of the time nobody was talking as we traveled. This lack of continuous conversation could have been to help maintain our strength and save our energy, or maybe we were just too tired or in a daze of self contemplation. We could not get food from our backpacks during our trek because if the others were like me my fingers were too cold to unzip my zippers on my backpack. Also, if we took off our backpacks they would sink in the very deep powder.

The sound around us was muffled due to the falling snow and the snow-covered trees that surrounded us. When I looked up all I could see through the falling snow was a light glow of darkness. This color gently transitioned   to the brighter color of the snow on the mountains and road we skied on making this environment a silent surreal experience. I am sure the temperature was far below freezing outside. Due to the amount of exercise I had been doing and my proper clothing my body did not feel too cold except for my hands and feet.

We Made it to Our Shelter (the Barn)

In the distance through darkness and falling snow we thought we could see a structure. Once we got closer and confirmed it was the barn this sight brought happiness and anticipation with the thought of shelter and rest. As we skied up closer to the barn we were all terribly disappointed because we found that someone had taken down all the walls on the barn. The barn still had a roof, although there were now only boards of the frame with large gaps in-between each holding up the roof. We were all very exhausted and needed to rest. Our friends were too far away to go back during such a severe storm at this point, therefor we all made our way into the shelter of the barn.

After removing my backpack I was so terribly thirsty I went to look for water in the Sandusky Creek while Terry and Stan waited at the barn.  Although the creek was only approximately 50 feet away I was gone at least half an hour attempting to locate the creek in the blizzard and darkness. Unfortunately I returned without water since I was unable to reach the creek due to the deep snow. I   also felt my attempt to locate the creek in the blizzard was getting extremely dangerous and I also sensed if I proceeded it would be like committing suicide. When I returned to the barn I laid down on my sleeping bag and insolated pad and huddled near where Stan and Terry were in their sleeping bags. We were all very hungry and thirsty. We were all too tired to get any food out of our backpacks. Plus, my fingers were too cold to unzip the zippers on my backpack to get at my food, or my stove to heat up some snow to melt and get any drinking water. This was the first time I had taken off my backpack or sat down in hours and although I was beyond exhausted sitting felt nice.

While lying on my back in my sleeping bag in the wilderness approximately 1.5 - 2 miles away from the closest small town I was cold and exhausted. Attempting to sleep occasional snowflakes would fall onto my eyelids. During the night I kept a plastic water bottle filled with snow snuggled against my body. During the night I prayed my body heat would melt the snow in the water bottle enabling me to quench my dire thirst. In the morning I attempted to drink from the water bottle and unfortunately found no water. I was very disappointed none of the snow melted after enduring an uncomfortable sleepless night with a cold snow filled water bottle huddled next to me.

Morning Had Come

All too soon it was morning. We knew we could not stay another night in this barn without any walls. The blizzard was still going strong outside and we realized we needed to leave quickly. When we looked at the opening where a door would go if this barn had one we noticed this exit was almost covered to the top of the door jam with fresh powder. With astonishment of almost being completely snowed in we planned our next actions. We literally had to climb out after digging the snow out of the way to get back to ground level to start our journey again. In an attempt to leave as quickly as possible with a goal to make it back to Forest City before it got dark I skipped eating. If I did have anything I could have had a small piece of beef jerky.

By morning the very light powder snow was so deep we could only travel inches at a time. The person in the lead would kick their ski back-and-forth under the snow until one ski tip would eventually break through to the surface. Once the ski was free they then lifted the ski up as high as possible then took one step forward into the very soft powder. After the ski was on somewhat solid snow again this exhausting process would be repeated over and over again to travel. We used this technique as we carved a trench approximately 4 feet or more deep enabling the ones following the leader to follow in their tracks. The powder was so light on either side of the trench; my ski poles never hit any solid snow as they felt like I was swinging them freely without any resistance in thin air. By now all of us were exhausted beyond words. The strongest and most experienced skier had to take the lead most of the way.

The others behind the lead skier would hardly move while waiting for the leader to take another step forward. Since I was not an experienced skier I would usually be near the end of the line of our group waiting for the leader to take a step. While I waited I would constantly be doing deep knee bends, touching my toes and moving my fingers and toes to help prevent severe frost bite which could require amputations when I returned. I would also move my upper body from side to side enabling the snow that had accumulated on me to fall off my backpack. I would also occasionally reach up on my backpacked behind my head and scoop off some snow to suck on to moisten my mouth. I was cautious not to eat too much snow since I did not want to lower my body temperature by eating large amounts of it.

We Found Our Friends Again

After skiing for a few hours, we eventually found our friends Tom, Pat and John on the snow-covered dirt road where we had left them. They were packing up their gear and tent most likely to start their trek to the barn where they thought we would be. They explained their igloo-style dome tent had become completely covered with snow by morning. As they opened the zipper to the door of the tent they encountered a wall of snow which caused the other side of the tent to collapse. It was a rude awakening after experiencing a cold night, therefor they realized they had to head back to the car as this trip was not turning out as they hoped for. They had packed up their food and hot drinks, although they had a little left which Terry graciously accepted. Pat was having difficulties with the skis he rented and at one point he lost one of his clips that held his ski boot to his ski. I thought to myself if we did not find the clip so Pat could put his skis back on there was no way we could get him out since the snow was far too deep for him to travel without skis. Luckily after a little digging around in the powder we found his boot clip.

Soon all of us were slowly and painfully on our way back to Forest City. During the many hours we traveled I kept thinking to myself over and over again that I would not let myself die. I felt how easy it would be to give up and lay down and die in the snow. I felt I would not feel any pain and die peacefully if I chose this option. I felt as if death would be just like going to sleep and never waking up. Since giving up was not an option for me I continued.

Looking through the falling snow we noticed an object off in the distance. This was the snow-covered bridge going over the creek that connected the snow-covered dirt road we were on back to the road where we had parked our cars. Since we were almost back to our cars we began to feel a sense of relief thinking our ordeal was almost over.

We made it Back to Forest City, Now What?

After a grueling 11 hours of traveling the approximately 1.5 -2 miles to make it back to Forest City from the barn we were almost there. I thought about how much energy and calories I used during this long trek.

Upon crossing the bridge to Forest City just before reaching the main road which was plowed the   snow was up to our waist/chest/chins depending on the height of the person and where we stood on the road. Stan looked over at Tom as he impatiently made parallel tracks with him and all Stan could see was Tom’s head above the snow!

At this time two men from a house of he distance a little way up the road stood out on the road watching us struggle in the snow as we passed below the cemetery. Once we had crossed the bridge and made it to the main road that was partially plowed we began to look for our cars. To our astonishment all we could see when we looked in the direction where we had parked our cars were two snow moguls completely burying our cars. The road was also covered with many feet of snow therefore we could not get out even if our cars were not buried.

Attempting to Locate Shelter

Since our cars were buried our first thought was to camp in the snow-covered road. Then we thought about our second option which was to attempt to get to one of the houses in the very small town to find shelter. We could see a couple of houses off the road although they looked almost impossible to get to due to our exhausted state and the deep snow.

As we looked around we could not see or hear any sign of life not even the two people we had seen earlier as we passed below the cemetery. We figured, maybe most people no longer live in Forest City or had left for the winter.

The first house on the road had a large covered porch in which we planned on taking shelter under. It was very difficult getting up to the porch from the road due to the amount of deep snow. I was so exhausted I stayed back on the snow-covered road while Stan made it to the house. Stan took off his skis and took one step onto the stairs of the porch and suddenly   a roof-load of snow fell off the tin roof on him. We were all so tired, nobody said a word, not even Stan. Stan then climbed out of the snow and just to be sure nobody was home he knocked on the door to ask who ever lived there if we could take shelter on the porch. When the door opened an elderly lady, Miss Vivian (what the local's called her) answered. She quickly said "If you are stupid enough to be out in this storm you deserve to die and slammed the door shut. Stan immediately knocked again, and this time her husband answered. He let us use the phone and Stan called one of his local contacts Scott in Pike although he was also snowed in and couldn't help us. After the phone call Miss Vivian's husband brought all six of us coffee which we all gratefully accepted as we drank it down. Even though Miss Vivian was still not going to let us stay on her front porch, we at least had gotten some fluid into us which sparked some life into our dreadfully tired bodies.

Caring and Generous Person Shows Up Out of Nowhere

The only other person in town must have seen us and walked over to us as Miss Vivian was rejecting our pleas for shelter. This kind stranger named Ralph quickly told us we could stay in his basement. Upon hearing this excellent news we became very grateful and happy. It looked like we would survive. After we had skied to Ralph’s house we took off our backpacks and skis on his porch. We then followed each other through Ralph’s house to the basement as his wife Asbestos looked on, probably wondering who these six strangers are and why are they in my home. The basement had a single light bulb hanging by a wire in the center of the room. Some snow blew in through the foundation skirting and gave the appearance that the walls of the foundation were made of snow. Also plywood littered the ground. It was not the most pleasant accommodations, although we were   very grateful!

After taking off our wet clothes we hung them over the pipes in this basement to allow them to dry. Now that we were on solid ground I was now able to get into my backpack easily for the first time and eat some snacks.

Some time later, Ralph who invited us to stay in his basement told us to come and have some hot food his wife Asbestos had caringly prepared for us. My eyes sparkled with joy in anticipation hearing this exciting news. We all went into the living room where they had a nice warm fire going. We all had a dinner of beef stroganoff, spaghetti, mashed potatoes, vegetables, pie for dessert and drinks.

While we were sitting around eating we over heard a conversation on the CB or short-wave radio (not sure what kind of radio). Ralph who was a gold mine manager had people who worked for him who were still lost out in the blizzard possibly out towards the Ruby mine above Downieville. We could tell from his conversation he was organizing a rescue party for the morning. Ralph’s foreman was also trapped in a mobile home a couple hundred yards up the hill from his house. They talked on the radio and at one point the foreman said his generator had died and he was going to go see if he could fix it so the heater would work. He let Ralph know in case he didn't make it back. Eventually he radioed back saying he got it running again. He had used a piece of plywood and laid it across the snow, crawled across the plywood, and repeated the process to and from the generator until it was running.

Ralph enjoyed telling a few people on the radio about the crazy young guys he took in that were actually trying to camp in this storm.

That night we all slept peacefully in the living room instead of the basement. As soon as the sun rose we all enjoyed a hearty home cooked breakfast prepared by our gracious hosts. As soon as we were done with our delicious breakfast we got shovels and dug out our kind host’s truck.

As we were digging it out with joy and gratitude, he told us a helicopter was coming to take him to try to find his workers. By now the snow had stopped. We noticed the thermometer on the porch registered 10 degrees. This made me wonder how cold the temperature was when it was dark outside or when the blizzard was in its most fierce stage.

After we had freed Ralph’s truck we then placed plywood over his windows on his house to keep the snow from breaking them before the snow plow/ blower came up the road. We had to cover the windows because the snow plow’s blower chute was broken and wouldn't change directions allowing the snow to be blown away from the house.

Soon the snow plow/ blower came and cleared the road. We watched in anticipation as the snow plow/ blower driver just missed the Alfa Romeo I had ridden up in by inches. The driver cleared the road so close to Stan’s car that after the snow plow/ blower passed some red paint on one of the doors was now exposed. The car antenna was now bent possibly from the weight of the snow.

We had to move our cars before they could land the helicopter. After we dug around our cars we pulled them out from the snow banks with Ralph’s vehicle. Not long after our cars were free the helicopter landed in the road and picked up Ralph, our caring and thoughtful person, who may have saved our life’s and was now off to attempt to rescue his own workers.

Time to Depart Our Winter Wonderland and Celebrate

After our cars were free from the snow bank we quickly packed up our two cars and left for home on April 2nd before any other snowstorms rolled in. In our car with Stan, Terry and myself we celebrated by singing songs with joy in our hearts, listened to music and talked all the way home. We had conversations about the happiness of life and how lucky we were to survive such an ordeal. We also talked about our gracious hosts Ralph and Asbestos and how some people can be so caring and generous. I also thought about Miss Vivian who declined to assist us when we first made it back from Lucky Dog to Forest City. It could be she was afraid of six strangers and did not know how to react. I was grateful to have had previous experiences in the mountains which helped with this challenging blizzard adventure.

Safely Back Home

When we arrived home, our families, friends and co-workers were happy and relieved to see us alive and safe. I felt my ability to return home safe was a joyous celebration and a second chance at life. The blizzard had been on all the local news channels and everyone who knew where we were had been a bit worried knowing we were out in such severe elements.

When I returned to my then employer Gemco department store in Cupertino California one of my managers Clint quickly walked over to me and said with joy in his voice “we thought you had died”.

I did not know at the time how beneficial experiencing such a perseverance to survive our cross-country ski trip in an extreme blizzard would assist me later in life. This experience may have assisted me in some way when in May of 1999 I had my second experience with the possibility of dying. This experience was due to suddenly going into a coma for 3 months, going completely blind, losing the ability to walk for 1 year, enduring many surgeries, medical procedures and countless hours of therapy and training to re-skill myself.

One thing I do regret about the trip is that my fingers were so cold I could not get my camera out of my backpack during our cross country ski trip. When we made it back to Forest City I was focused on how we would get out and back home therefor I was only able to take the few picture's below.

Captions to Pictures

John, Terry, Stan, and Tom all dressed in wool shoveling snow around a vehicle as Terry smiles.

  Ralphs Buried Truck - Friends Shoveling Snow

Ralph’s house as the snow plow/ blower makes its way up the road.

Ralphs Snow Covered Home

Stan’s Alfa Romeo buried in snow

Stans Snow Covered Alfa Romeo

Beautiful snow covered hillside and snow covered trees

Beautiful Snow Covered Hillside with Trees
 

Statistics from This Major Storm We Survived

From Tahoe Nuggets #230 WINTER OF 1982: 

It’s been 30 years since one of the deadliest avalanches in Sierra Nevada history broke loose at Alpine Meadows Ski Resort and killed seven people. For those of us who remember this tragic event on March 31, 1982, and the days of grief and hope that followed, it represents a benchmark in time. The 15.5 feet of snow that fell at the Central Sierra Snow Lab between March 27 and April 8, 1982, still ranks as the greatest single snowstorm total on record for Donner Summit.

The Donner Summit Caltrans rest area on Interstate 80 is approximately 37 air miles from Forest City.

Noted in the San Francisco Chronicle for Thursday April 1 and Friday April 2 1982:

6 feet of new snow fell on April 1st and then 4 additional feet fell on April 2nd.

216 inches or 18 feet of snow fell at the Mammoth Lakes area.

The article called it “the biggest early spring storm on record”.

Read the complete articles San Francisco Chronicle graciously provided below. Note to some Assistive Technology Users the PDF files will need to have Optical Recognition performed on them.

Download 1-SFC-April_01_1982_page_1

Download 2-SFC-April_01_1982_back_page_column_1

Download 3-SFC-April_02_1982_page_1

Download 4-SFC-April_02_1982_page_4_column_1

Download 5-SFC-April_02_1982_back_page_column_1 

Conclusion and Reflections

One does not know how one’s previous experiences can be invaluable for any future challenge. You never know how the current challenging and difficult times can provide invaluable learning opportunities. Has anyone else experienced such compassion as we did when Ralph rescued us you want to tell us about? Do you have any camping, backpacking or cross-country ski trips experiences where you needed to push yourself demonstrating perseverance you want to share? Does anyone have comments about our trip?

We all look forward to hearing from you.

 

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

March 28, 2018 in Inspiration, People with Disabilities, Sports, Travel | Permalink | Comments (3)

Concluding the Year by Demonstrating Compassion with Gratitude While Practicing Unselfish Behavior

As this year comes to a close I hope we can take time out of our busy schedules to reflect upon and embrace the positive experiences that we may have had in 2017. I understand for some it is easier to recall the sad or difficult experiences like when my mom unexpectedly passed away on November 1st and when my brother-in-law passed away on March 3rd. Even with such sad events a person can leverage the positive aspects in the celebration of their lives.  Although I will always miss them I am fortunate to have many loving memories of spending time together with them including numerous phone conversations with my mom, which I am grateful for. I am also thankful I was able to be a part of my brother-in-law and Kathy’s sister’s many family events at their home including barbecues, family dinners, birthdays, anniversaries and holidays, all demonstrating his unselfish behavior and love for his family.

I am grateful I took the time out of my busy work schedule to gently assist my mom with numerous things before and after work daily and on weekends. I will always have many memories of my mom including how she picked up on mobile devices very easily and our many conversations about them. I will never forget her homemade cooking including scones, shortbread, chicken dumplings with large homemade noodle dumplings, chicken cacciatora, swiss steak and spaghetti as well as other meals she prepared with love.   We both enjoyed classic movies which always lead to some nice conversations. I am thankful that I was at the hospital with her on her last day and was able to hold her hand and kiss it (too many tubes to get close) as I cried I said my final good- bye to her. When I was holding her hand I felt she knew I was there to comfort her. Although my mom has passed away I am fortunate I did not take the attitude of being too busy to assist her. That act of unselfishness on my part now allows me to have my loving caring memories of her. I plan to continue to practice the same compassionate behavior without overstepping my boundaries as I continue to assist my dad.

Kathy and I are grateful and count our blessings daily that together we are able to face the many challenges and obstacles sometimes presented to us mainly because of my blindness.  You may want to read about some of our challenges and obstacles in Celebrating 30th Wedding Anniversary with Gratitude. One reason, out of many for our gratefulness, is when we were able to overcome a large obstacle we faced near the end of 2016. Thankfully Kathy and I partnered together to overcome an extremely unstable job situation due to possible layoffs for me.  If that was not stressful enough at the same time Kathy and I were in great jeopardy of losing our home we have been renting for almost thirty years due to the owners decision to sell the house. Fortunately we decided to purchase the house which has been our home for many years. Our home had become very comfortable and safe for us. It is also easy and safe for me to navigate around in the house as well as in our neighborhood. This skill that enables me to safely and easily navigate as a person without eyesight in our home and other places is due to my many hours of orientation and mobility training I had after I went blind. During our housing search we tirelessly researched places in Georgia, Illinois as well as many other locations we could possibly move to.  That time of job and housing instability was extremely stressful causing fear and anxiety, Kathy and I managed together to make it through that challenging and difficult period of uncertainty due to our deep love and devotion to each other.

We are very much looking forward to another exciting year ahead that includes all the bumps and turns in this precious road of life.  We will also continue to practice the act of unselfish behavior.

How do you cope with the unexpected loss of a loved one? How can we better use time management techniques to increase our potential for unselfish behavior to assist those in need or less fortunate in 2018? Does anyone have any examples of how you have helped others or demonstrated compassion? Does anyone have any tips to share to help us all make the time that is needed to help others even when we think we are too busy? Or maybe someone has tips to help reverse the attitude some might have of I do not need to help because others will.

We all look forward to hearing your valuable comments and stories to propel us forward with a trajectory of success and happiness in the upcoming holidays and New Year.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

December 05, 2017 in Disabilities, Inspiration, Leadership, People with Disabilities | Permalink | Comments (2)

Celebrating 30th Wedding Anniversary with Gratitude

When I wrote my blog post, Anniversaries - What They Mean to You I was celebrating my 20th wedding anniversary.  Now I am happy and grateful to be celebrating my 30th anniversary this month on June 14, 2017.

If you have not had the opportunity to read any of my other blog posts to get to know me here is a short background describing what happened to me. I went completely blind in 1999 during a seven month hospitalization three of which I was in a coma. Now I also require two canes to walk, one support cane and one long white cane for navigation.  

As I wrote about in “Anniversaries - What They Mean to You” I will always remember my 11th wedding anniversary among all others except for my 12th which I describe in my blog post above. I will never forget my 11th wedding anniversary because it was the last anniversary I could hold my wife and look into her bright caring eyes and see her loving expression on her beautiful face looking back at me. Thinking about the length of time that passed since that wonderful occasion brings up the thought of Kathy and me reaching another milestone. Our new milestone is over half of our married life I have not been able to see my loving wife Kathy or assist her the way I could or want to if I was not blind and did not require two canes to walk. Although I am working many hours a week in my profession, most other activities around the home are left up to Kathy to complete by herself which is very stressful and difficult.

Below are additional reasons I am celebrating and am grateful for to add to the ones I noted in Anniversaries - What They Mean to You.

  • I am grateful Kathy did not accept the advice of the hospital personnel to send me off to a rehabilitation facility far away from family and friends. She instead decided to take me home to perform some rehabilitation herself which also enabled me to connect with local organizations to assist me locally instead of my being isolated in some far off location.
  • I am grateful to have my dad build me a standing frame from plans he got from one of our local hospitals. This enabled my wife Kathy to work with me daily using it along with the other required therapy. This therapy eventually enabled me to walk again which I describe in Learning to Walk Again.
  • I am grateful after having a total hip replacement that Kathy again took me home to help with the required rehabilitation which enabled me to recover and heal at home. I wrote about this in Accepting the Inevitable Total Hip Replacement , instead of sending me to a rehabilitation center.
  • I am grateful Kathy did not take the advice of others and leave me when I was in the hospital. This enabled us to continue on our journey through life together, although now with additional obstacles and bumps in this road of life.
  • I am grateful I have Kathy to maintain our home, our yard, our car and finances among all of the other things she does daily from sunrise to well past sunset, occasionally taking some time off for herself. 
  • I am grateful Kathy brings light into my darkened eyes as we continue on our life’s’ journey to reach another wonderful milestone together, and dream and plan for many more in the future.

Since my 20th wedding anniversary blog post, like some other people, we have endured financial difficulties, challenging living situations and experienced many other obstacles in our life which tests our health, marriage and friendship.  We understand we are not unique and these circumstances are all part of life that we accept and will continue to do the best we can together as partners in life.

Wedding Picture June 14 - 1987 Bill and Kathy June 2017 standing in living room Bill and Kathy June 2017 standing in front yard


Does anyone want to share any reasons why they feel anniversaries are special? Are you celebrating an anniversary of any type in which you would like to include all of us in your celebration? Do you have any additional thoughts to help us all not lose track of what is important in life? Lastly, any comments on how we can maintain gratitude and love through challenges?  

We all look forward to hearing from you.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

June 11, 2017 in Disabilities, Inspiration, People with Disabilities, Personal Development, Self-Help | Permalink | Comments (0)

Lemonade on the Road to Recovery

The story I wrote below was published in the summer 2006 edition of The Blind Californian, a Publication of the California Council of the Blind. Since many of you do not read the Blind Californian or have not seen it I re-published it here to enable you to read it. This experience took place when I was in O’Connor Hospital in San Jose, CA. May 1999 through December 1999.

 

Lemonade on the Road to Recovery

Have you ever wanted lemonade so badly you had nightmares and your tongue felt like it was a piece of sandpaper or steel wool? No? Well I surely have! Let me explain.

A few years ago, I was critically ill; in a coma for three months; hospitalized for seven more; and had many tubes and wires attached to me. During this time I was on life support with a ventilator attached to a trachea tube in my neck and could not drink or eat anything for four months. All nutrition was given through my intravenous line (IV).

I had many torturous nightmares during my hospital stay about being thirsty. In my dreams, glasses of ice cold beverages were always just out of reach, so close I could feel their coldness.  I'd see people watching me as I sat in my wheelchair trying to reach that glass, agony in my face, and nobody would take the time to push it just a little closer.  It was though I was invisible to all those people staring at me. I was so thirsty, it was pure torture.

My thirst was all I thought about while awake or asleep. I almost looked forward to the interruptions of pain, sickness, blood tests, surgeries and procedures; these things could take my mind away from thoughts of cool beverages and how good it would feel to have a drink. I'd lay there thinking of being able to walk over to the faucet, turning it on and have cool running water come out; about filling a glass of water and drink it down gulp after gulp until it was empty.  I passed the weeks and months not only thinking of drinking water but also of orange juice, iced tea, tomato juice or anything cold. My best daydreams were of the day I could leave the hospital, walk to a refrigerator, open it, and grab an ice-cold drink.  I thought this would be a dream come true. I thought how lucky all the people, not in my situation, were to be able to get drinks whenever they wanted; perhaps not even realizing they have it so good and taking it all for granted.

My mouth was so dry for so long I wondered when this part of my torture would end.  The nurses were allowed to swab my tongue with cotton swabs with a little lemon flavor but this did little to quench my thirst. About a month or so after awaking from my coma I was allowed to have a little crushed ice. The compassionate nurses would give me only about one teaspoon, or less, as a treat I greatly anticipated. It was such a joy and temporary relief.  I'd try not to swallow the ice or chew it too quickly, preferring to let it linger to refresh my parched mouth and tongue. When the nurses switched shifts, I would ask for more ice but eventually they caught on and put a big sign above my bed which said "patient not allowed anything by mouth." This was, according to the doctors, because my body was not ready for ice.

I eventually was given two rehabilitation therapists and my therapy started. They would have me do things to build up my strength, coordination and orientation.  As undesirable outcomes of my illness, I had become totally blind, could not sit up in bed or walk.  As you might imagine, I needed all the therapy I could get. Most of it was very difficult and painful at times.

One day I was told that, as part of my therapy, I would get to make and drink lemonade.  I thought I was hallucinating or dreaming.  Drinking lemonade would be much better then the things I normally did in therapy. First, though, we had to get me to the location before my fun could start. O

I could barely move, and could not walk, so getting me in or out of bed was always a challenge.  The therapists used a crane-like device called a Hoyer lift to hoist me from the bed and lower me into a wheelchair. Dangling from this device by straps was very relaxing and soothing to my body. Once I was lowered into a sitting position in the wheelchair, the straps were removed, the IV bag was transferred to a hook above me and I was ready for my journey.

I had no idea where we were going or what the therapists were carrying so I could make lemonade and I didn't care, I just knew I would be drinking real liquid that was all that mattered. I had a great big smile on my face as they wheeled me by the other patients, with my IV bag hanging high above me on its hanger. **Since I couldn't see anything, I just imagined me being wheeled by other patients beds; I looked over as I smiled, pretending other patients were watching as I paraded by.  I could have been smiling at the walls for all I knew. I imagined my therapists smiling as well, the love and joy in their voices made me feel they really wanted to help me get well and be whole again.

I was so excited, it felt like Christmas! Instead of never tasting thin fluids on my tongue and throat, I was on my way to drink Lemonade! I say thin fluids because what little liquid I did get had a thickening agent added, causing it to be gritty with tiny granular particles. They did this to prevent me from aspirating fluids into my lungs and getting pneumonia. Imagine drinking thick room-temperature water or thick and gritty orange juice, not very pleasant.  Now you can see why drinking any cold refreshing fluid would be so exhilarating, especially lemonade.

Soon we arrived at our destination and my therapist pushed my wheelchair up against a sink, handed me a plastic pitcher and told me to fill it about three quarters full. Since doing most anything was new to me as a blind person, making lemonade was a challenge. I reached to find the faucet handles on the sink and realized I had no way to tell which faucet was hot water and which was cold. Both handles felt exactly the same to me, and since I prefer cold lemonade I did not want to fill the pitcher with hot water. Realizing my dilemma (no doubt from my baffled expression), one of my friendly therapists gently put my hand on the cold faucet where I proceeded to fill the pitcher until I realized I wouldn't know when it was three-quarters full. Since, according to the therapists, the directions required this much water to make the lemonade, I explained my predicament.  They suggested I use my fingers. I quickly shoved my hand into the pitcher to test the water's height.  Once the water felt like it was at the proper level I turned it off. The pitcher felt heavy to me with my weak hand and arm, so after getting a good grip with both hands, I gently pulled the pitcher out and away from the sink while trying not to spill anything.

I was then ready for the lemons, wondering how I would cut them without sight.  I reached out, ready to grab a lemon or two, but was handed a plastic bag.  I asked, "What is this?"  They told me it was powdered lemonade mix.  I was a bit relieved because being weak and clumsy, I thought I might cut myself if I attempted to cut lemons.  I gently opened the Ziploc baggie and poured its contents into the pitcher. I did not have to worry about measuring because my therapists had already done it.  Setting the pitcher on my lap, as I sat in my wheelchair, I positioned it firmly between my legs, to hold it snugly, and proceeded to slowly stir the lemonade, with the wooden spoon given to me, so as not to spill anything.  When the therapists told me I had stirred enough, we added some ice cubes and I stirred some more to make the lemonade ice-cold.  As I stirred, I imagined drinking this delicious beverage.  I couldn't wait!

Once complete, I poured some into a plastic glass, judging it's fullness by its weight and cheating by sticking my finger into it. (The therapists must not have trusted me with a real glass.)  I offered it to the therapists (being the gentleman that I am, ladies first).  In amazement, neither wanted it, probably because I had stuck my fingers in it; but since I couldn't see the expressions on their faces, I never knew.  In any case, I was ready to indulge in this cold, delicious, thirst-quenching lemonade.  I took a sip and couldn't believe how good it was.  My taste buds went wild and my mouth seemed to suck it up before any of it had a chance to go down my throat.  Some did make it, and I felt this large quantity of cold, icy liquid going down.  Soon the glass was empty. I poured another and offered it to my therapists and, again, they declined.  I couldn't believe it.  They said go ahead and have another glass.  I thought I must be in heaven!  I slowly poured another glass with my finger in the glass, waiting until I felt fluid touch it. I drank this glass down very quickly, barely letting it hit my tongue.  I took the pitcher and swooshed the liquid around to test its fullness.  I heard the lemonade swooshing and could feel its weight.  This instantly widened my smile, knowing there was still more of this delicious, cold drink left.  Still trying to be a gentleman, I asked the therapists, one last time, if they wanted a drink.  They both said no, so I filled my last glass; drinking more slowly, savoring every last drop of pleasure as the coolness, wetness and delicious taste of this lemonade delighted my senses.  I did not know when I'd be able to have another drink and wanted this pleasure to last forever.  All too soon the glass was empty.  I then washed everything as this was a part of my occupational therapy lesson.

After this thirst quenching adventure, my wonderful therapists wheeled me back to my room.  All the way back I felt like I was in a daze and very contented.  Before I knew it, I was in bed.  I pulled the thin hospital covers up to my neck as I got comfortable.  I just laid there thinking about how enjoyable a nice cold glass of lemonade can be.  As I lay there in my own darkness, still smiling from the great experience I just enjoyed, I thought this was really a very good day and you sure can't beat a cold lemonade.

If you want to listen to a Podcast of this story visit Podcasts at the Global Dialogue Center and scroll down until you find LEMONADE ON THE ROAD TO RECOVERY.

Has anyone else had such a challenge that it became an obsession, like my desire for a drink of water? Do you have any thoughts that came to mind for you after reading my story?

I look forward to hearing your valuable comments to help us continue this discussion.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

September 01, 2016 in Disabilities, Inspiration, People with Disabilities | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dancing Santa: Demonstrate Positivity & Unselfish Behavior to Enjoy the Holidays

As the year comes to a close I pray we can take the time to value our blessings. We are blessed to be alive to enjoy the opportunities life presents to us as gifts such as companionship, friendship and love of others. I for one can easily fall into the trap of concentrating my efforts and valued time on attempting to resolve procrastination or selfish behavior demonstrated by others that negatively impacts me and my family. Deep down my common sense lets me know it is a wasted effort since I don’t have any control over others poor actions or decisions. I can also easily work twenty-four seven since I enjoy my work. I therefore attempt to pay attention to my work-life balance to help prevent leaving little or no time for family, friends and enjoying the wonderful holiday season.

 

In today’s world with many distractions and busy schedules I feel, without proper planning, the holidays could easily pass us by, thus, missing out on the joy of the season. I believe the true importance of the season is to remember what should be my priority in life, which is my wife Kathy, enjoyment of family and friends, as well as performing my very best at my place of employment. Also assisting in the community and the less fortunate is an important priority. 

 

During this time of year one reflection that always comes up for me is listening to a song called Jingle Bell Rock by Bobby Helms.  I remember listening to this cheerful song daily during this time of year while I laid in a hospital bed in 1999 in wishful anticipation of leaving the hospital. I was told the song Jingle Bell Rock played from an electronic singing and dancing Santa Claus.  I say I was told because I went completely blind suddenly during this hospital stay and could not see the dancing Santa Claus with my physical eyes , therefore I imagined this happy scene in my mind’s eye. This dancing Santa Claus brought joy and happiness to all within listening range of the joyful person who owned the Santa and played it often. As I laid in my hospital bed I would listen to the elderly man talk, telling stories of his joyful life and experiences to his many visitors from his nearby hospital room. This allowed me to get to know him virtually over the days.  From listening to him, his visitors, the nurses and doctors I learned sadly as much as they tried, the doctors could not cure or stabilize his medical condition and he was dying. Although he was aware of his situation and was in considerable pain and discomfort his passion for happiness was contagious to all around him. Every time I heard the dancing Santa sing or this man talk so enthusiastically it put a smile on my face and allowed me to feel a sense of tranquility as I laid in my bed. I feel the reason this joyful elderly man was so loved by his many visitors was his positive attitude, his unselfish behavior and his willingness to give to others.

 

I am extremely grateful to say on December 28, 1999 I was able to leave the hospital after a seven month stay. Actually I was sort of forced to leave since my medical insurance which I was fortunate to have at the time had exceeded the limit. Although I did not have medical insurance when I left the hospital still in need of treatment, in debt from the many bills from the hospital stay, I felt extremely blessed, joyful and grateful to get another chance at life.  As I left the hospital I knew I would never forget the positive and joyful person who provided happiness to all by allowing everyone around him to experience his contagious passion for life and his joyful dancing and singing Santa Claus.  

 

I hope as we celebrate the holidays and conclude the year we can all enjoy the holidays, prioritizing our actions where we truly feel they should be valued and placed in our hearts. Helping the less fortunate and the disabled I feel should be a part of our priorities whenever possible, since this group of people may not always ask for assistance although they can usually use the extra help.  – I know from experience. I also feel to help keep positivity in our life we should not think and act selfishly. We should instead demonstrate kindness, equality and think of others when taking unfair actions.  Enjoying the simple gifts of life is very important, like the dancing and singing Santa Claus.  I also hope if you are like me and are experiencing obstacles and challenges which you have little or no control over you can learn to accept the losses and move on no matter how much you are hurting or experiencing inequalities.

 

Do you have any experiences to share or suggestions to help us with any of the points I noted above? Any other thoughts or comments to help us enjoy the holidays and the closing of the year with passion for life and caring for all? 

 

I look forward to hearing your valuable thoughts and comments to help us have the most wonderful holiday season ever!  

 

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

December 20, 2014 in Disabilities, Inclusion, Inspiration, People with Disabilities | Permalink | Comments (6)

Perspectives on Inspiration for the New Year: Disability & Success

 

I read Inspiration for the New Year, Perspectives on Disability & Success blog post which I found meaningful, encouraging and provided valuable insight. 

Some Key Points from the Blog Post: 

• "Instead of hiding and feeling ashamed of who we are, we have to show what we are capable of in spite of, or because, we are disabled.”

• "We as future leaders have the unique ability to change the way others think of those with disabilities and ultimately change the world to our liking.

However, in order to do this, we must start by changing ourselves.” 

• “With the appropriate types of accommodations and the superb work ethic that we have demonstrated our whole lives as we advanced towards where we are today, we can accomplish anything that we want to in life.” 

• "We are not normal people; we are in fact extraordinary. We have tackled challenges that most cannot even fathom, and we have emerged victorious. When any of us confronts attacks of judgment, prejudice, or condemnation, we know exactly how to respond: fight back with wisdom, perseverance, and leadership by example.” 

I also enjoyed reading about the Leadership & Development Symposium. 

What perspectives do you have from reading Suzanne Aptman’s Lime - boundless ability blog post? Do you have examples of how you have, or will demonstrate the traits/attitudes described in the New Year? Any other tips or stories to help us be all we have the ability to become? 

We all look forward to hearing your valuable comments. 

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

February 05, 2014 in Accessibility, Disabilities, Inclusion, Inspiration, Leadership, People with Disabilities, Personal Development | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Helen Keller Achievement Awards & Exploring NYC Without Eyesight

In June, I was grateful to be invited by my employer to attend a Helen Keller Achievement Awards Ceremony / Dinner presented by the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) in New York City, NY (NYC), with my wife Kathy, colleagues and other attendees. This trip was my second opportunity to travel on a commercial airline since losing all of my eyesight. After I received the invitation to attend the event, I immediately started my planning and preparation to facilitate a successful trip that would hopefully be as trouble free as possible. I describe my trip preparation in a past blog post I wrote entitled Employee of the Year.

At the Helen Keller Achievement Awards Ceremony / Dinner I truly enjoyed listening to the people who introduced the award recipients, describing the work the recipients do to assist the visually impaired or blind by improving the quality of life, enhancing job opportunities by reducing barriers by increasing accessibility. I also enjoyed listening to the recipients humbly accept their awards and explain some of what they did to achieve this meaningful recognition.

BillandKathy-NewYork

The following day I was invited to go to AFB’s corporate headquarters and take a tour through the Helen Keller archives museum and meet with AFB. Being completely blind myself and belonging to some blind / low vision organizations in my local area, I have heard a few things about Helen Keller. During the tour I was pleased to learn many new things about Helen Keller. Now I have a better understanding of what a wonderful and remarkable person she was, and how she has helped change the world to assist blind, visually impaired, deaf, and hard of hearing, as well as many other people.

SIGHTSEEING with My Wife: The Art of Using All My Senses
This was my first trip to NYC, therefore I wanted to take advantage of my short time in-between meetings and award ceremonies to see (sense) some sights. With my wife Kathy’s assistance we walked on foot paths next to the Hudson River near the 911 Memorial towards Battery Park. Kathy described many wonderful statues, memorials, flowers, trees, old iron fences, old fashion street lamps, and other beautiful and distinctive old style architecture built with many bricks. I took the time to touch some of these objects so I could sense their texture and physical size. This enabled me to more accurately imagine what these objects looked like in my minds-eye. She also described the color and perceived depth and width of the river, as she also described the Statue of Liberty at a distance across the river. She also described the many ferries and boats on the river, and helicopters flying above the river. The same day after our AFB meeting and tour we walked from Madison Square Garden and Pennsylvania (PENN) Station to 26th Street then towards 51st Street, Madison Avenue, Broadway Avenue and many streets in-between. On 34th Street Kathy described Macy’s department store (the largest in the world we were told). She also described the Empire State Building, Time square, Rockefeller Center and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We went into St. Patrick’s Cathedral and since it was a warm day the cool temperature in the Cathedral was an exhilarating and pleasant treat. We walked throughout this remarkable large old Cathedral as Kathy described the many carvings, statues and stained glass windows. To help me visualize how large this Cathedral is in my minds-eye I felt one of the very large columns that held up a portion of the large roof. The column was so large I could not wrap my arms around it, and it felt like it was made of stone, or a concrete material. I took this opportunity to sit down on one of the many pews in the Cathedral and prayed. After we left the Cathedral we passed Radio City Music Hall, many other landmarks and numerous stores. I truly applaud my wife’s site guiding technique and expertise, walking through NYC, evading hundreds of people, obstacles, yellow cabs, cars, and crossing busy streets with a variety of Hard (90 degree angles) and (Soft) curb cuts that gently sloped down at each intersection. All of this navigation was accomplished while at times I could not hear Kathy’s verbal instructions warning me about upcoming obstacles due to the loud traffic, and sirens from police cars and fire engines. Luckily I have learned to feel Kathy’s body movement with either my left hand on her right shoulder, or right upper arm with my right hand on my support cane while she sight guides me. With this technique I can react to her body movement and not rely on any verbal cues. By the time we did our very quick walking tour of mid town New York, it was getting close to dinner so we searched for a taxi. After observing which streets had the most taxies driving down the streets, we strategically placed ourselves on one of these streets in a location in which a taxi could easily pull up to the curb. By using this technique we soon found a taxi to take us back to our hotel in time for a wonderful dinner with a co-worker. After our wonderful meal and great conversations we went back to our hotel and prepared to leave for home the next day.

The Rest of the Story
Kathy and I had an incredible time listening to the remarkable people who were recognized for their work and received the Helen Keller Achievement Awards, listening about the valuable work AFB is doing to help the blind, visually impaired and visiting NYC briefly. Everyone we met on our trip was thoughtful, courteous and seemed to celebrate life and companionship.

A few days after we returned home we celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary. We honored and celebrated our life together, our companionship, devotion and our never ending love that will continue for all eternity. Read another blog post I wrote about our 20th Anniversary entitled:
Anniversaries: What they mean to you.

Have you had the opportunity to take a tour with assistance? This assistance does not need to be sight guiding or verbal descriptions, like the invaluable assistance I received. Maybe you have other challenges or disabilities which require other types of assistance when traveling and sightseeing you want to share? Has anyone attended or received a Helen Keller Achievement Award? Any other thoughts or comments?

We look forward to your comments to help us all grow personally and professionally, and expand our knowledge and awareness.

Bill Tipton
Contributing Author,
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton
Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton
Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

June 30, 2012 in Accessibility, Creativity, Disabilities, Inclusion, Innovation, Inspiration, Leadership, People with Disabilities, Personal Development, Self-Help | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)

Tags: anniversaries, bill tipton, disabilities, inspiration, leadership, self-help

Cherish Your Visions With Eyesight – They Could Be Your Last

To this day, I can still clearly recall four of my final visions and experiences when I had eyesight.

Grocery Shopping:

My final grocery shopping experience with eyesight was on Sunday, May 23rd, 1999. What I clearly remember is the sound of glass jars breaking, and the vision of spaghetti sauce splattering all over the store floor with the broken glass. I then looked towards my wife Kathy and with astonishment realized her white tennis shoes and socks were splattered with spaghetti sauce and she was surrounded by broken glass. After my initial surprise of the sounds and vision of the accident, I noticed my wife attempting to step around the broken glass, and through the spaghetti sauce that was surrounding her. I felt very nervous watching and sensing her uneasiness surrounded by these hazards. I feared that Kathy would slip and fall on the glass and injure herself. I attempted to remain as calm as possible as I assisted her to step through the dangerous obstacles. Once we were both clear of the hazards, we could not help laughing about the sight of the mess, including Kathy’s sauce splattered shoes and socks.

What I miss most is the freedom of going shopping and being able to see what is on the shelves or displays. I also miss the ability to watch out for obstacles and help others avoid them.

 

Driving:

My final driving experiences were uneventful for those who have the option and ability to drive a motor vehicle. However, since I cherished the independence and relaxation of driving near the ocean, in the hills, high mountains, deserts, forests, paved and dirt roads these beautiful scenic images and experiences are with me continually. Monday, May 24th was a typical day of driving to and from work like any other day. Tuesday, May 25th was uneventful as well, except for on my way home from work I was entertained by a family of ducks, including some small young ducklings following closely behind the parents crossing the highway. All four lanes of traffic stopped to let this family of ducks cross the street safely. As I sat in the traffic jam watching everyone around me, I felt very content and happy that everyone cared enough to let this family of ducks cross the highway safely.

What I miss most is the freedom and fulfillment I felt when I could drive. I also treasured the ability to drive and go anywhere anytime I want; instead of having the option of being able to plan a trip where there is an accessible transportation route, or the option to graciously accept rides from others.

 

Wedding Picture:

My final vision of my wife Kathy that is etched in my mind is from pictures in our wedding album. Every day I would look at these pictures of Kathy in her beautiful wedding gown and feel how lucky I am to have such a wonderful and caring wife, so much that her image is permanently etched in my mind. One fear I constantly have is that I might forget what the forever frozen - in - time and ageless, faces of my family and friends looked like. I fear these visions might fade with time, unless I consciously practice remembering how others I had once been able to see look like.

What I miss most, I will never again be able to look into my wife’s eyes and see her emotions or watch my wife age gracefully as we spend our wonderful and joyful years together.

 

Last Sight - Forever & Ever:

On Wednesday, May 26th, I heard doctors calling Kathy over to the hospital bed I was laying in. I do not remember how I got to the hospital bed, since I hardly remember Kathy driving me to the hospital that life changing night.  I just remember eventually agreeing to let Kathy drive me to the hospital as I crawled across the floor in agony because I could not tolerate the excruciating pain any longer. I must have eventually got up from the floor and walked to the car since Kathy could not carry me, although I do not remember this part of my trip. Lying on my back in the hospital bed in a daze, I remember looking up into bright lights that surrounded me, experiencing unusual pain throughout my body with a sense I was slipping away from this world. I could not recognize any of the faces behind the medical masks looking down at me from all around my bed. Soon I heard my wife Kathy’s voice mixed in with all the other commotion as she walked towards the bed.   From what seemed to come through the many doctors and nurses that surrounded me I felt Kathy’s compassionate hand gently touch me and provided some reassurance. I clearly remember looking in Kathy’s direction and telling her” I am sorry, I am dying”. Then my eyes watched the lights dimming around me as the light became narrower and narrower, as the light continually dimmed until the lights went out forever. I had slipped into a coma and was placed on life support.  When I woke up from my coma three months later I had found I had become completely blind due to the extremely critical medical condition which caused me to go into the hospital. I am very grateful and overjoyed I lived to write about this experience, share my experiences, can see my wife again in my mind’s eye, and have the option to experience life with family and friends.

What I wish is that I did not choose such dreadful words as my potential last words. I wished I had enough sense in my mind to say something to give hope to my wife, like “I love you; I will talk with you again as soon as I can.”

 

Has anyone else had last visions that meant something special to you? These visions do not have to be visions with eyesight. They can be visions in your minds-eye, your goals, plans or wishes. We all look forward to hearing your thoughts, comments and stories to help us give meaning to our visions, and appreciate them.

Please cherish your vision, if you do have eyesight. You never know if these visions could be your last.

 

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

March 31, 2012 in Disabilities, Inspiration, People with Disabilities | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBack (0)

Dreams: Powerful, Valuable & Insightful

I woke up one day, opened my eyes and discovered I had no eyesight, attempted to talk and could not speak, tried to breathe through my nose and found I was not able to. Shortly after experiencing these new physical challenges I found I could not lift my legs or arms.

WHAT WOULD I DO, HOW WOULD I RECOVER, AND WHAT WOULD I LEARN:

Too weak to panic at the loss of some of my abilities, or care (at the time), you might think someone experiencing such life changing events would contemplate what would cause a drastic change in someone’s life, and what you might learn from such an experience.

POWER OF DREAMS:

I had just awakened from a three month coma, finding myself with these new obstacles to overcome. (In reality I did not awaken from my coma all at once. I opened my eyes very briefly one day, and very gradually stayed awake longer and longer each day.) During my coma I had many long dreams that seemed to last for days. These dreams were agonizing, uncomfortable, terrifying nightmares, in which I was aware of my critical and deteriorating medical condition. I believe these dreams helped prepare me to accept the fact that my life had changed forever. I had lost the ability, or option to live my life the way I had known since birth.   The way I had become so comfortable and accustomed to living my life was gone forever. These valuable dreams helped teach me to have the patience to endure my inevitable long hospital stay (7 months). They prepared me to commit my passion and energy to the needed rehabilitation and training I required to return to my professional career and my personal life with my new disability. These dreams also helped me discover my own unique and valuable abilities.
 
I had almost died many times in my dreams. I experienced relentless, torturous discomfort, pain and agonizing fear, and uncertainty, along with some visions of hope. I traveled many places in this temporary dream world, meeting with several people, seeking consultation and a remedy to my critical medical condition.

Relentless determination to live and the power of faith must have led me to meet a power much stronger than all during my dreams. This power, I believe, gave me the strength and courage to awaken from my coma, and join the “real” physical world, again. These dreams gave me a unique 3 month opportunity to explore my feelings of enduring torturous pain, discomfort and growing spiritually. This, I humbly believe helped to reinforce the fact that I might be able to return to the “real” physical world for a reason.  After such a gift of life, I was determined not to let anything stop me from overcoming my many new challenges to accomplish my goals in my personal and professional life.

My wife Kathy had the same vision and beliefs that I would not die. She believed this so strongly, that she refused to let the doctors remove me from life support, which would have ended my life prematurely, causing me to never reach my destiny.

Having the support and care from the many skilled doctors and nurses at the Catholic Hospital, along  with the many prayers from the Nuns, Priests and Chaplains at the hospital, and many prayer groups, and prayer circles around the country praying for my recovery,  aided in my physical and spiritual healing.

POSITIVE NEWS:

Although I have lost all my physical eyesight forever, I am happy to say I am able to speak again and breathe on my own through my nose and mouth. However, this all happened only after the life support and feeding tube was removed, my tracheotomy healed up, and I had to endure many hours of speech therapy. I am also happy to say, after many painful and exhausting hours of physical therapy and orientation and mobility training, I can not only move my arms and legs, I can even walk again with the aid of two canes.

I hope everyone has the ability to dream, and hopefully learn from your dreams. Never underestimate your ability to adapt and re-learn (everything, if needed), to trust and believe in yourself and your higher power. Please do not let anything, or anyone extinguish or squelch your dreams before they have the ability to come to life and flourish, like a hillside full of thriving wild flowers blooming in the spring sunshine.

We very much look forward to hearing how dreams (night or day) provided support, guidance or learning opportunities to help all of us.

Bill Tipton
Contributing Author,
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton
Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton
Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

February 26, 2011 in Disabilities, Inspiration, People with Disabilities, Personal Development | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

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