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What Really Matters?

How can we make a positive difference in other people’s lives? 

Thirteen members of the American Legion Riders (ALR) of Ernest A. Love Post 6 recently showed us what matters with their actions and deeds.  They embarked on A Ride That Matters.

Raising over $14,000 and riding their motorcycles and trikes over 2,500 miles in the western United States- the ALR team made a huge impact on hundreds of people’s live. Veterans and their families, children and burn victims were assisted in this effort. 

The ALR members of Post 6 embarked on their eight-day journey on May 31, 2025 and rode from Arizona to Nevada, California, Oregon, Idaho, and Utah. they stopped at multiple locations and met with the four non-profit organizations listed below to distribute the donations they collected. 

Members of Post 6 American Legion Riders as they depart Chino Valley, AZ on 5/31/25

Each of these organizations received $3,000 donations from the American Legion Riders:

  • Camp Courage:  Arizona Burn Foundation.
    • Arizona Burn Foundation’s mission is to improve the quality of life for burn survivors and their families in Arizona, while promoting burn prevention advocacy and education. The camp is a week in Prescott, AZ for burn survivors age 6-19 to build courage as they connect with other survivors through horseback riding, swimming, arts and crafts, high ropes, rappelling.
    • https://azburn.org/camps
  • Central Oregon Veterans Ranch
    • Over the past nine years, the Central Oregon Veterans Ranch has touched the lives of veterans and their families through therapeutic, vocational, and agri-therapy programs on our 19-acre working ranch.
    • Supporting at-risk veterans with weekly movement and mindfulness sessions including yoga, tai chi, and gentle aerobics. 
    • https://www.covranch.org/
  • Project Healing Waters
    • A leading nonprofit in therapeutic outdoor recreation, using the sport of fly fishing as an intervention. They help active military service personnel and Veterans in need through a dedicated, developed curriculum of fly fishing.
    • https://projecthealingwaters.org/about-us/
  • Yavapai Big Brothers and Sisters
    • Mentoring: Yavapai Big Brothers Big Sisters makes meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers (“Bigs”) and youth (“Littles”), ages 6 through 24. 
    • Provides families life-sustaining resources like food, shelter, and medical care.
    • https://azbigs.org/what-we-do/
ALR Members present donation check to Camp Courage in Prescott, AZ

In addition to visiting the non-profits, the ALR team stopped at over 10 American Legion Posts along the route of A Ride that Matters. At the June 2025 General Meeting of Legion Post 6 in Prescott, Commander Sam McPherson gave praise and recognition for the outstanding hospitality to five Legion posts who went above and beyond to support and welcome the tired and weary riders.  

Here are the American Legion Posts who welcomed the Post 6 ALR with open arms, big smiles, and warm spirits during their week-long ride.

  • Post 40 in Henderson, NV
  • Post 8 in Klamath Falls, OR
  • Post 18 in Nampa, ID
  • Post 112 in Salt Lake City, UT
  • Post 69 in Kanab, UT

A Ride That Matters was not just a success; it was an accomplishment that shows the strong impact we can have on each other’s lives. This act of goodwill exemplified two of the four pillars of the American Legion – Rehabilitation of Veterans and Youth and Children. The outpouring of love and support resonated deeply with everyone involved, making the world kinder and more compassionate through these efforts.

Thank you to everyone who participated in, supported and donated to this incredible event.

The children, veterans, and families that were helped by this ride showed their appreciation with their smiles and laughter— and that is ALL that really matters.

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Of Courage and Judgement

In the eleven years of writing my thoughts and ideas on my Word Press site Strong Words and Simple Truths, I’ve observed that some posts receive more random views than others.  The blog below was written in October 2016 and is one that is consistently gets viewed by three or four people every month and I’ve always wondered why.

On this morning in June 2024, I pulled the Judgement card and reflected on the symbolism once again.  I haven’t seen this card in years and decided to read the widely read 2016 blog again.

It’s uncanny how similar patterns in the world and in my personal journey keep repeating themselves.

As I embark on a new chapter and journey in life, I am reminded to keep the faith and have the courage to do what is right.  

Photo by Lukas Hartmann on Pexels.com

The following excerpt about the Judgement tarot card is taken from https://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/learn/meanings/judgement.shtml and applies to all people facing major changes in their lives.

“It’s a very hard card to read, in part because it deals with very hard and final decisions.  And it means facing something that most querents don’t want to face.  This is not about Death, something ending whether you want it to or not, this is about deciding to make a change, to stop doing something that isn’t working or do something that will work.  Which means that’s it really a card about courage, and about recognizing that you’re holding on something that needs to be let go.”

Here’s my post from October 9, 2016 titled The Fool on the Hill and the Judgement Card:

There is nothing like a good tarot card reading, a pending move to a new state and a bizarrely disgusting election news cycle to get me to look at things in an altered way.  An Agile Life encourages us to have frequent Retrospectives to review what is going well, what is blocking us and what we can do differently.

I view tarot cards as a mirror to the heart and soul and they often reflect thoughts and notions back to us in a new light.

“There is no way to leave the past behind,” The Angel observes. “Each step wears down the shoe just a bit, and so shapes the next step you take, and the next and the next. Your past is always under your feet. You cannot hide from it, run from it, or rid yourself of it. But you can call it up, and come to terms with it. Are you willing to do that?

The Angel hands the Fool a small trumpet. The Fool is hesitant, but he knows that the Angel is right. There are certain memories he has a hard time looking back on as they make him feel guilty, ashamed, angry. He knows that he’s never come to terms with what happened and he must if he wants to make that final transition.”

Here are some retrospective thoughts and questions based my drawing of the Judgement Card last night:

Are we able to resurrect the past, forgive it and let it go?

Do we need to start something we’ve been putting off or have the courage to finally end something that isn’t good for us?

Is it time to move on?

As I bask in the glorious autumn weather of Colorado and watch the leaves turn to orange, yellow and red, I remember that they will all fall to the ground soon, dead but nurturing to the soil below. I also have faith that the leaves will be reborn in the spring as the seasons continue to roll by.

I have hope that after the cold winter, there will be a better, brighter season but in the meantime…

It’s time forgive and move on to more important things.

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Self-Nourishment: Releasing for Recovery

Are your muscles tense and holding a huge amount of stress?

Is your neck screaming at you? Maybe it’s your lower back that is barking.

Life’s challenges can be extremely stressful on your physical body. So often we hold our stress in our muscles and this leads to pain and discomfort. What can you do to get some relief?

To help release and let go of your tension, I recommend the top 3 basics of walking, stretching, and yoga. Recently, I experienced great release and recovery from a fitness class at Mountainside Fitness called “30 MIN. XPRESS ROLL & RELEASE” led by Kathleen Sollars which used foam rollers and tennis balls to help us achieve the benefits of myofascial release and increased blood flow and circulation to soft tissue. I felt like a stick of melted butter after this class! It’s amazing what a bit of focused rolling and pressure point action can do. The result that night was the best quality sleep I’ve experienced in months.

To help us better understand and apply the release and recovery model, my good friend and Yoga Therapist, Nancy Martch, shares her wisdom and focuses on the importance of self-nourishment in our daily lives. More than self-care, self-nourishment is the intentional replenishment of vital energy and breath to the body. Just like it is beneficial to feed our bodies quality food and nutrients, it is equally important to fill up our body’s emotional and spiritual tanks with positive movements, reflections, and breath work. In addition to yoga and mediating, rolling and releasing can be key components to your daily self-nourishment.

Below is a slide I appreciated from a presentation crafted by Nancy, owner of Jai Yoga. As my Yoga Therapist, she has helped me to become more aware of my body and its response to external stimuli and trauma. Nancy has helped me to breathe, balance, release and accept. Yoga therapy is an outstanding way to promote health and well-being within a therapeutic relationship. To learn more , check out this video. Follow her on Facebook and Instagram @jaiyogahouston

It is my hope that you can release some of your pain and tension with these ideas and tips. Life is too short to be in constant discomfort and you deserve to have some relief.

Take care of yourself. Breathe, move, and let it go.

Self nourishment calls on the Mother within you to take action for your personal and specific needs.

Remember the 3 Rs of Roll, Release and Recover!

Namaste.

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A Plateau in Unfreezing my Shoulder

It’s been over a year since my Frozen Shoulder started causing me intense pain and lack of arm motion and I thought it was time to share some updates on the recovery journey.

The majority of my healing occurred 6-9 months after stabbing, nerve impingement pain started. I believe the multiple actions and treatments contributed to my reduction in pain and improvement in range of motion but I think the most important and impactful actions were Physical Therapy and Yoga Therapy.

My current situation is overall positive for the following reasons: 1) I have no pain in my arm and shoulder, 2) I can lift my left arm directly over my head, 3) I can ride my bike and run, and 4) I can do most yoga poses.

The plateau in progress started about 10 months after my problems started and I still have limited range of motion in my left arm in certain positions. For those who are know yoga, my impacted side is not able to touch the ground when I do “cactus arms”. While standing, the angle of my left lower arm is at 30 degrees instead of 45 degrees when I have my palms facing out and my upper arms perpendicular to the ground.

My Physical Therapist has be working on my subscapularis, infraspinatus and supraspinatus muscles in my back for a while but they are still very stubborn and often unrelenting. How do I get these muscles to relax and loosen up?

My eagle arm pose is good when the right shoulder is called to stretch but fails to fly when my left shoulder is asked to take off. Some back muscles just feel stuck and still frozen.

Eagle Arm Pose

I’m not sure what to do at this point other than continue to move, stretch and work on regaining my upper body strength. I’m grateful that the pain is gone but I get frustrated and disheartened that I can’t do certain movements as a fit, middle-aged athlete. I long to do 15 push ups like I did just last year.

I know there are many women over 50 years old who have faced and endured similar changes with this painful and often misunderstood illness and I hope that this brief blog gives some people hope and insight on their own challenges.

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A Natural Alliance to Strengthen Social Fabric

As the new Charter Organization Representative (COR) for Boy Scout Troop 172, I am excited about the opportunity to the be Point of Contact and bridge between two long-standing organizations.

The partnership between the American Legion and the Boy Scouts of America can strengthen the social fabric of our communities.

This pairing is a natural alliance that will nourish and bolster the bodies of our youth and the body of our nation.

Why is this partnership so important?

It is important because the future of our country depends on shoring up the principles of our Representative Democracy and the foundations of our federal Constitutional Republic.

It is encouraging to see the four aims of the Boy Scouts line up so closely with the four Pillars of the American Legion.

The Boy Scout aims are: 1) Personal Fitness, 2) Character Development, 3) Citizenship Training and 4) Leadership Development.

The four pillars of the Legion are: 1) National Defense, 2) Youth/Children, 3) Americanism and 4) Veteran affairs and rehabilitation.

Our national defense is strengthened by the scout’s focus on personal fitness and merit badges such as athletics, climbing, hiking, swimming and rifle shooting are key to this.

This focus on personal fitness will also help future members of the military be more combat ready and able to strongly serve and protect.

The scout’s Character development focus is supported by the Legion’s focus on Youth and Children with the Eagle Scout of the Year award, speech contests and other scholarship programs.

The Boy Scout’s Citizenship training is a key component of the Americanism and is supported by the Legions’ Boys States and Boys Nation programs.

Americanism is an important, common goals and the scout’s support this through the many flag ceremonies and their duty to the country.

Lastly, the scout’s Leadership Development aim is directly aligned with the Legion’s focus on Veterans Affairs and Rehabilitation.

The common goals of the Boy Scouts of American and the American Legion are to nourish and strengthen not only the bodies of our youth but the body of the United States as One Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

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The Courage to Communicate

It’s the weekend before a huge mid-term election in the United States where millions of voters will let their voices be heard.

As I celebrate my 28th year as a communicator in Toastmasters, I am keenly and closely watching and listening to my fellow citizens boldly and bravely expressing their thoughts and opinions about what is happening in their communities.

It takes a lot of courage to openly communicate political preferences and policy priorities but more and more people are doing it in 2022.

FILE – In this July 26, 2016, file photo, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, speaks at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. Gabbard says she met with Syrian President Bashar Assad during a recent trip to the war-torn country. Appearing on CNN, she says there is no possibility for a viable peace agreement in Syria unless Assad is part of the conversation. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

It’s been intriguing and entertaining to witness the rapid change taking place at Twitter since Elon Musk bought the company last week. So many opinions are flying back and forth- I find it a fascinating and exciting time.

Free speech and democracy are on everyone’s minds. It will be a roller coaster of emotions and declarations next week and I am looking forward to the open dialogue that hopefully will occur as a result.

We can’t solve problems if we don’t communicate and listen to one another. Courage and humility will be needed in heaping portions as we enter into a new phase of political balance.

The Courage to Communicate is the subtitle to my first book- Strong Words and Simple Truths but this week it is the Headline!

Here are some triads that I wish for everyone in the coming week:

Strength, Tolerance, and Respect

Balance, Perspective, and Agility

Gratitude, Serenity, and Joy

Truth, Knowledge, and Common Sense

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This Is Me: Family and Foundation

I watched the award-winning speech twice, first with my right brain and then with my left.

The first time I viewed the 2022 World Champion of Public Speaking, Cyril Junior Dim, I sat back and enjoyed the story, the humor and the emotional drama. The impactful message resonated with me and inspired to write this article.  My creative mind was activated.

During my second observation of the speech entitled “Ndini”, I used my left brain to analyze the structure, word usage, and delivery techniques. Click here to view the speech.

It is with both sides of my brain (with help from my corpus callosum) that I write this article.

The foundational phrase of the winning Toastmasters speech by Mr. Dim was “This is me” which translates to Ndini in the Bantu language Shona.   The repetition of this powerful message struck a chord in me and caused me to reflect on my own family and identity. 

Cyril Dim wove a powerful story around self-acceptance, family and tradition as he reflected on his middle name which came from this father’s language.  He boldly asked the audience, “Have you ever hated or been ashamed about some aspect of yourself?”  I wasn’t proud of my answer to that question but knew that this was an important topic and worthy of further contemplation.

I suppose that before I can proclaim “This is me!”, I need to ask “Who am I?”.

More than a result of the human reproductive process of my mother and father, I am a Heinz 57 blend of genes and traits from my ancestors from numerous countries across Europe (UK, France, Germany and Italy).  I am also a US citizen who represents the values and ethics of my family and friends.  My parents and home environment growing up surely shaped me and made me into the woman I am today.

I love and respect my parents and wish they hadn’t left the earth so soon. 

My parents pinning on my 2nd Lieutenant bars after the Army Commissioning

Who I am is strong and solid thanks to the love, support and encourage of my parents, my siblings and extended family of aunts, uncles and cousins.

Me and my siblings

My foundation is a resilient and durable patchwork quilt of genetics, experiences, traditions, and values.

I lived at home with my parents until I graduated from college and received a US Army commission.   In retrospect, I should have spent more time with my parents and thanked them more for all that they sacrificed for me but, like most adolescents

 I didn’t appreciate what I had.  During my teenaged years, I wasn’t as proud of my Mom as I should have been and was often embarrassed by her hearing impairment and her simple words. It pains me to think of how badly I treated her when she couldn’t understand me.  My impatience and rudeness were horrible, and I am embarrassed by my immature and selfish behavior.  It wasn’t until I moved out on my own and was married that I fully appreciated who my parents were.

Like Cyril Dim, I came to embrace and be proud of my family name and my parents’ values.  I know that they are responsible for my strong foundation, my work ethic, and my patriotic spirit.

The words below were read to me recently by my Yoga Therapy coach, Nancy Martch, and truly hit the mark on idea of Ndini- This is Me.   

I am steady, resilient, direct and complete.  

“Foundation Stones”

by Danna Faulds

Here is my past—

what I’ve been proud of,

and what I’ve pushed away.

Today I see how each piece

was needed, not a single

step wasted on the way.

Like a stone wall,

Every rock resting

On what came before—

No stone can be

Suspended in mid-air.

Foundation laid by every

act and omission,

each decision, even

those the mind would

label “big mistake.”

The things I thought

were sins, these are as

necessary as successes,

each one resting on the

surface of the last, stone

upon stone, the fit

particular, complete,

the rough, uneven

face of these rocks

makes surprising,

satisfying patterns

in the sunlight.

Photo by eberhard grossgasteiger on Pexels.com
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Coming Out of Lockdown

No one in the world was ready.

Not a single person was perfectly prepared for the tsunami named COVID- 19.
Some early warning was given, some was heeded, some ignored.  It was the Lunar New Year after all.

The consequences of so many leadership decisions worldwide in January and February 2020 will be analyzed and scrutinized for years. The unintended consequences will be felt for decades.

man standing on seashore

Photo by Sean Sandoval on Pexels.com


The past 100+ days have been a challenge for everyone. The world is united in its suffering and we all are experiencing it our own unique way. Our own personal lens and experience defines how we view and perceive the dreaded coronavirus.

I’ve been hit harder on an emotional level than I thought I would be.

My writing had ceased. My creativity was squashed. The pandemic lockdown rocked my perspective.


I know I am not alone. My problems are not unique. I’m not a snowflake but I do feel more fragile than ever.


I am not alone. This sucks for a lot of people on the planet. But what choice do we have? We survive, we cope, we endure, we adapt. That’s what humans do.


I’m writing again, and you are some of the first people to read my words this year.
I am writing again and it won’t be perfect but it will be real, raw and heartfelt.


The reality is that I feel a rainbow of emotions each day. Some warm, some cold, many are red hot.


I’ve recently resolved to be more positive (it’s also part of a Toastmasters level 3 Pathways project) and I have to confess –  it is extremely difficult to be positive in the world today.


I’ve never had to isolate so much and sever my physical connections from my family and friends. It hurts.

But now, as July approaches, I have new resolve and clearer focus!

I endeavor to pay attention to these 4 areas:

  1. Creativity
  2. Grounding
  3. Writing 
  4. Discipline 

I was inspired by a great quote from Ed Latimore which proclaims “Self discipline is freedom”.  I like that since the only thing I can control is myself- my own behavior and habits.

And so, I work on myself and my reactions to the external and often negative input and stimulus.  I work on my own thoughts and actions and I pay attention to what I consume (digitally, emotionally and physically).

I don’t know what the future holds but at least I am writing again and I hope that this messages reaches a few people around the world and lets them know that they are not alone in their suffering. We are not alone in our difficult challenges.

I may not have been ready for this pandemic but I am certainly adapting and modifying my thoughts and behavior to survive the storm.

In closing, I’m looking over at the wall hanging in my office which says,

“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass,

It’s learning to dance in the rain”.

– Vivian Green

I’m dancing and I’m writing and I hope that you will join me.

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