Disability Dialogue with Bill

Thankful For Unexplainable Guidance

        
I believe all things happen for a reason. Most of us have had unexplainable circumstances at some point in our life that have had underlying meanings.

One unexplainable event happened to me very soon after I got home from the hospital. I was in the hospital  for seven months and lost all of my vision and ability to walk, due to an extremely critical medical condition that hit me without warning.

Very shortly after getting home from the hospital I received a telephone call as I laid in bed recovering. The voice on the telephone asked “ is this Bill Tipton?”. I said with some hesitation, “yes, it is” Then the person on the telephone asked, “are you blind?” I answered “who is this? They quickly responded I am John Doe, from a church I had never heard of. John Doe  said a member of his congregation had found a Braille bible in one of their pews after a service. The Braille bible had my name and telephone number hand written in it. John Doe  said they were calling me to return my Braille bible. I responded with astonishment, my name is Bill Tipton and I am completely blind. I told them I had never been to or heard of their church. I also told them I just got out of the hospital after a seven month stay and that was not my bible and I did not know Braille. I graciously thanked them for taking the time to call, as we both were in wonder of who the bible belonged to. 

I felt sensations of bewilderment and amazement run throughout my body wondering with astonishment how this bible with my name and telephone number got into their church. I wondered  why that apparently lost bible was left on a seat in the pew of that church. I thought this unexplainable event must have happened for some very special reason.

To this day I never found out how that bible got in that church. Every time I think about that Braille bible with my name and telephone number written in it I am in wonder. When I think about that telephone call those same sensations I had when I got that mysterious telephone call run through my body all over again. 

Some incredible events in my belief that followed that mysterious telephone call.

 • I returned to church in my wheelchair without any eyesight.

 • Learned how to use a screen reader to allow me to use a PC and applications without eyesight.

 • Learned grade one and grade two Braille.

 • Learned how to walk again and left my wheelchair behind after many doctors from multiple hospitals said I had no hope of ever walking again.

 • Joined three non-profits in my community to help others.

 • Returned to work after a tremendous amount of re-skilling to enable me to contribute my very best to my employer  as I help many customers and employees from all over the world.

I truly believe others have experienced unexplainable events that have taken them on similar paths as mine. If you have not, maybe we need to take life slower, so even the dimmest simplest of signals do not go unnoticed. Even if you do not fully understand the underlying meaning, your heart and attitude needs to be open to let your inner self accept the signals. Unexplainable events if associated with proper timing to your calculated planned events can catapult your success. Just a few examples of the planned events  I talk about are  learning from co-workers, friends, observing others, networking, work experience, formal education and doing volunteer work to help others.

With everyone attempting to accomplish more in less time in their personal and professional life, it is vital to pay attention to your unexplainable events  as much as your planned events. This frame of mind is needed to take advantage of the catapult  effect I described when you associate different types of learning opportunities together. This is even more critical during our unstable financial and economic situation our world is in today, when we are asked to do more with less, some are loosing jobs and their homes. In some parts of our world some are fighting for the bare necessities of life to enable them to live without enough food, access to medication to fight critical deadly diseases, lack of shelter  and other very unfortunate situations. .   If you do not take advantage of unexplainable events, it is like throwing away a free learning opportunity.

In the US we celebrate Thanksgiving Day this week. This Thanksgiving Day one of my many things I am grateful and thankful for is the ability to accept help from unexplainable sources with humbleness and gratitude. Live with an attitude of faith and expectance to help your dreams become a reality. 

Has anyone else had a unexplainable event happen? If so, after the event happened did that event trigger any special learning’s to help you? Do you see any explanations from my mysterious telephone call? We all look forward to hearing from you.
 
 Bill Tipton
Contributing Author
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

            

Holiday Traditions

Hello All,

Do any of you have special traditions you like to participate in during the holidays? Some of you might have limited time, failing health, medical conditions or a disability which limits the way you participate in some of your favorite traditions. After I went completely blind instantly one day after work I was able to find new ways of continuing with some of my traditions I enjoyed so much throughout the years. Even if you can not participate in your favorite tradition the way you used to; I hope you can find a way to carry on with your traditions in some way. We do not want these cherished traditions to be lost forever like some have over the years if they are not passed down from generation to generation.

Some other traditions I had to give up completely because I could no longer participate safely without any eyesight. One example of a tradition I had to give up was picking out a fresh Christmas tree from our local mountains. I used to drive to our local mountain range in my four-wheel drive vehicle. My wife and I would drive down the steep rocky and bumpy dirt trails that twisted and turned through the trees at our favorite Christmas tree farm to find the perfect spot to cut down a wonderful fresh Christmas tree. These trees had that fresh pine smell I love so much. The needles were so bright green and soft to the touch as I inspected the tree for imperfections with my fingers. Besides the joy of cutting down the tree with my family; half the fun of this tradition was the complete outing. We would get to the tree farm early in the morning. The air was pleasantly fresh, clean and cold. Sometimes you could see the fog as it wisped through the trees as the wind blew the fog and clouds up from the coast. This mountain range where the tree farm is located is near the Pacific Ocean. You could look off to the distance for miles and miles over the tree and brush covered mountains and hills. It was a very beautiful sight to behold with all of the varieties of colors outstretching as far as you could see. Some times it would be raining on our outings. On rare occasions snow would be covering the ground and the trees. We would bring hot coffee or hot chocolate in thermoses to help keep us warm. We would bring snacks and doughnuts to keep us nourished. We would also bring pieces of tissue to mark the trees as we walked through the trees so we would not get lost as we wandered in search of our perfect tree laughing and talking as we trudged up and down the hillsides with great big smiles on our faces.

Since I lost all of my vision instantly one day after work in 1999 and my loving wife does not drive on such treacherous dirt trails we had to give up this cherished tradition of cutting down a fresh Christmas tree in the mountains. Even if you have challenges I hope you find ways to carry on the traditions that are true to your heart. As you will read in my story I call Decorating a Christmas tree with a Disability you can read how I carry on with one part of this treasured tradition. Below are just a few examples of traditions others celebrate around the world that might bring back memories.

Hogmanay
Maybe you participate in Hogmanay like they talk about on BBC - Food - News and events – Hogmanay.
Hogmanay was a time for friends and fun. Friends and neighbours would get together and have drinks and the obligatory shortbread (often eaten with cheese), sultana cake, black bun and such delights as ginger or blackcurrant cordial - as well as, of course, the obligatory drams of whisky.

St. Lucia Festival, Hanukkah, Jewish Festival of Lights
Maybe you participate in St. Lucia Festival, Jewish Festival of Lights, Hanukkah or other traditions like they talk about in the California Report: Audio Archive.
Kingsburg's St. Lucia Festival
Drive a stretch of Highway 99 near Fresno, and you'll see it: an enormous coffee pot rising above the vineyards and orchards. It's really a water tower in disguise. To the 12,000 townspeople of Kingsburg, it's a proud symbol of their hamlet's Swedish heritage. The folks there rave about their Swedish coffee.
We visited Kingsburg as it celebrates a festival from the old country.
Celebrate a festival of lights -- and stays warm in the kitchen to learn the family secrets to Poppy's potato latkes, just in time for Hanukkah.

Some Great Italian Traditions
Search for Authentic Ravioli Forges Family Bonds From NPR.
New Jersey food writer Laura Schenone spent five years finding and perfecting her great-grandmother's authentic ravioli recipe.
The New Jersey writer set off on a quest to find her great-grandmother's hand-rolled ravioli recipe. Along the way, she reunited with relatives and helped mend frayed relations with others around the dinner table.

My wife and her family are full blooded Italian; so I know what a great tradition food fits into our celebrations. We have a great time on every holiday with food being the central point around family conversation and companionship. My wife told me how her grandma and mom would completely cover her bed with freshly rolled out homemade ravioli’s so they could properly dry. In the other room the sauce would be simmering on the stove giving the complete house the mouth watering aroma of tomatoes, oregano, onions, basil, beef, garlic, sausage and other ingredients as the fresh pasta sauce flavors married together to perfection. Her family would spend hours making a variety of Italian holiday cookies for us all to enjoy. I love them all; but my favorite Italian cookie is a fig cookie called Cuchidahti. The center is filled with a soft fig mixture with a delicate covering of tasty slightly crunchy dough with a delicious glaze. I am part Swedish, Scottish and Cherokee - Native American Indian; so I fit right in to my extended Italian family and do not hesitate to participate in the family food traditions we share during the holidays.

Going completely blind does not stop Bill from continuing a family tradition
I personally still like to decorate my Christmas tree. I no longer drive in the mountains where I live to cut down my own tree since going completely blind. This does not stop me from carrying on with my tradition of decorating our Christmas tree. I now decorate an artificial tree I can put together myself. Actually my loving wife Kathy helps me and we put together tree as a team. All the lights are already strung on the branches which makes it a bit easier for us. Read my story I call; decorating a Christmas tree with a Disability to help you get into the spirit of the holidays and share with me one of my favorite holiday traditions.

Do any of you have special traditions you like to participate in during the holidays? Any traditions you like to participate in other times of the year? Any traditions you have had to modify or quit because you are not able to participate any more? We wood all like to hear your tips to help us continue our traditions; if you have figured out ways to overcome any challenges you might have to allow you to continue your tradition. Any special traditions you celebrate in other parts of the world you want to share with us?

I wish you the very best in following through with your traditions; if only in your heart.

Bill Tipton
Contributing Author
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

Giving Thanks

Hello all,

Depending on where you are in the world you might be celebrating Thanksgiving this time of year.

Thanking God for a bountiful harvest is not unknown in other parts of the world. Apart from America, there are a number of religions and countries that celebrate Thanksgiving Day in their own various forms during the harvest season. The festivals are dedicated to thank the Lord for his blessings and the abundance and prosperity that he bestowed upon us are their underlying themes.

Read Thanksgiving Around The World to learn some about other countries celebrations.

I am wondering how you celebrate Thanksgiving where you are located. Do you celebrate something similar to Thanksgiving?

Most important, even if you do not celebrate Thanksgiving one other reason to celebrate is to be grateful for what you have.
We would like to hear what you are grateful for. Why are you grateful? If you are not grateful for anything at this time because things are not going so well; maybe we can help?

I’ll get us started in our conversation and sharing.

I am grateful for having a loving wife who stood by me while I spent 7 months in the hospital after I went completely blind instantly. 3 of those months she stayed by my side I was in a coma.

I am grateful I became completely blind in the age of technology that allows me to continue to work as a blind person and be as productive as I was when I had eyesight. Now I can provide for my family, help the customers I work with and helping others in my community and in the world.

I am very grateful to my family, friends and network of business relationships. These people supported me during hard times; believed in me and gave me the hope I needed to succeed.

I am very grateful to God to allow me to live so I can continue to pursue my dreams. I could have easily died while in my coma. I am very glad I did not.

We look forward to hearing what you are thankful for and why.

Bill Tipton
Contributing Author,
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/