Posts Tagged With: Everytown for Gun Safety

Day 2953: Join us on our mission!

I received this mission message yesterday on a bag of salty but relatively healthy snacks:

I didn’t read about their mission because I thought I was doing enough for their mission by buying and consuming their product. Also, I’m on vacation this week, so my mission is to relax, focus on self-care, and re-energize for my work as a group therapist during these difficult times.

So many people are asking me to join their mission these days, that I have to choose my missions wisely. For example, when I chose a birthday fundraiser on Facebook this year, I wasn’t sure which mission to join. There were so many worthy missions I considered, from racial justice, to environmental activism, to animal protection, and so on. I eventually joined the same mission I joined for my birthday fundraiser last year, Everytown for Gun Safety.

Join us on our mission to

  • improve the world, one step at a time,
  • focus on self-care, so you have the energy to engage,
  • accept all feelings,
  • set and maintain clear and healthy boundaries,
  • let go of worry, guilt, shame, and harsh judgment, and
  • observe and appreciate all you have.

Reply requested, and please listen to “Mission Impossible” while you consider choosing to accept the mission of joining us in the comments section, below.

.

Join us on our mission to express gratitude and love, every day!

Categories: life during the pandemic, personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

Day 2407: Mass shootings

This morning, I looked at the news with dread to find out more information about the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas.  After I found out more horrible details about that one, I saw that there had been another mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio.

For years, many people have presented credible cases on ways to reduce gun violence in the United States and polls indicate that most Americans agree with these changes.

And yet, the mass shootings go on.

What can we do?

This is what I do:

  • I write about it in my blog (even when it’s too much to process).
  • I ask for contributions to Everytown for Gun Safety on my birthday and today.
  • I vote for people who share my views about gun violence.
  • I support my son in attending a University outside of the United States, partly because I believe he is safer there.
  • I encourage the acceptance and love of the different parts of each human being and the different parts of the human race.

I also distract myself from this horrific violence in my country by taking photos of other things.

IMG_7228.JPG

IMG_7229

IMG_7234

IMG_7232

IMG_7230

IMG_7237

IMG_7235

IMG_7233

fullsizeoutput_3bfc

It’s an uphill climb to find a solution for uncontrolled violence; I hope we find it fast.

Here’s “Mass Shootings: When words fail”  featuring Steve Hartman and The Onion:

 

Thanks to all who helped me create today’s blog post and — of course — to you, for being here, now.

IMG_6979

Categories: blogging, personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 28 Comments

Day 2218: What’s not inside

What’s not inside our home is this sign, which I saw inside a supermarket last night:

img_2678

Have you seen what’s not inside?  How we can we something that’s not there?

What’s not inside my heart and mind, here and now, seen or unseen, includes

  • hate,
  • resentment,
  • fear about the future,
  • regret about the past,
  • expectations about my birthday on Groundhog Day,
  • concern about what other people are thinking about me,  and
  • all the words I wrote, earlier this month, for my latest original song, which I’ll be debuting at an Open Mic in five days.

What IS inside this post are the lyrics for that song, because typing them here might help place them more firmly inside my mind.

What are Other People Thinking About You?

by Ann Koplow

What are other people thinking about you?

Is it something good or something bad?

Who’s to say if you’re somebody they’ve noticed

And what they would be thinking if they had.

Was the person’s dirty look about you?

Was that guy annoyed by something you did?

Could it be he’s thinking instead of his family

Like his most distressing and stressing kid.

People’s thoughts go everywhere,

Of you they’re often not aware,

And even if their thoughts end up on you,

Thoughts can’t hurt you anyway,

Their thoughts will move and go away

Unless you let them stick to you like glue.

What are other people thinking about you?

I think we spend too much time thinking that.

Other people’s thoughts can’t really touch us,

Even judgments, like we’re stupid, old, or fat.

People’s thoughts go everywhere,

Of you they’re often not aware

And even if their thoughts end up on you,

Thoughts can’t hurt you anyway,

Those thoughts will change and go away,

Unless you let them stick to you like glue.

What are other people thinking about you?

Face it, you will never know for sure,

Then why not think they’re thinking that you’re gorgeous,

Talented and smart and secure.

© Ann Koplow, 2019

What’s not inside this post is the second ending to that song, which I wrote in response to what my son, Aaron, was thinking about those lyrics.

What is inside this post, as usual, are my recent and previously unshared photos.

 

What’s not inside that photo montage is a picture of my son’s keyboard, which I plan to put inside my car on Friday and bring with me to the Open Mic.

What’s not inside YouTube are  videos about what’s not inside things. Instead, searching on “What’s not Inside” at YouTube yields videos about what IS inside all the following:

What’s not inside this post, so far, is music. Here is “The Calm Inside the Storm” by Cindi Lauper:

What’s not inside this blog, yet, are comments on this post.

What’s always inside my posts are thanks to all who help me create them and — of course! — to YOU.

 

 

Categories: original song, personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Day 2211: Fun fun fun

Ready for some fun fun fun?

I’m having more fun fun fun than expected today because the strong winds and snow totals forecasted  for this weekend “drastically changed.” Instead of  my waking up to one fun foot of snow (as predicted), there are just a few fun inches:

img_2556

I know some people have fun fun fun in the snow, but I’m not one one one of them.

Yesterday, I had fun fun fun taking these fun fotos for my fun readers.

img_2533

img_2535

img_2536

img_2537

img_2538

img_2539

img_2540

img_2543

img_2544

img_2546

img_2548

fullsizeoutput_36aa

img_2549

img_2550

img_2551

img_2552

img_2553

Here are some of my fun fun fun thoughts, now now now:

  • I recently wrote a fun fun fun post titled “Hello Beautiful,”  It was fun fun fun, yesterday, to see a different card with that beautiful greeting.
  • I wish the opposite-of-fun-fun-fun government shutdown would end end end, soon soon soon. It’s no fun when good governments go bad (like those pugs in that calendar).
  • My fun fun fun and funny funny funny boyfriend doesn’t like the word “fun.”  He prefers to use the word “engaged.”  That’s why I had so much fun taking this particular fun foto yesterday:

img_2537

  • I love the word fun, use it all the time, and plan on having fun fun fun  as long as my heart heart heart  keeps beating beating beating.
  • Instead of just having fun fun fun on Groundhog Day in two weeks, this year for my birthday I’m doing a fun fun fund-raiser for Everytown for Gun Safety on fun  Facebook, because guns guns guns without safety are no fun fun fun.
  • I just read this fun article on how some Patriots fan fan fans don’t have so much fun fun fun on Game Day because their friends friends friends think they’re jinxed.
  • It’s fun fun fun for me to throw useless things away, especially when they ask me to keep them.

fullsizeoutput_36aa

Are we having fun yet?

It’s fun for me to know how you have fun fun fun, so please please please  comment comment comment, below.

Thanks thanks thank to all who help me have fun fun fun, including you you you!

img_2542

img_2509

img_2511

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 27 Comments

Day 1877: Save a life

Yesterday, when I was saving my own life by taking a healing walk near the ocean, I noticed this sign:

IMG_7074

I saved that photo because I think we need to save ourselves and each other,  one life at a time.

I’ve saved this saying in my heart:

Whoever saves one life, saves the world entire.

 

I will do my best to save a life today by

  • driving carefully,
  • doing my work,
  • taking care of myself,
  • taking care of others, and
  • contributing to save-a-life causes like Everytown for Gun Safety.

How might you save a life today?

Many thanks to all who care about saving lives and — of course!  — to YOU.

IMG_7025

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: , , , , , | 25 Comments

Blog at WordPress.com.