Rainbows and Butterflies-Heartfelt Stories of Special People and Special Education

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Rainbows and Butterflies

Heartfelt Stories of Special People and Special Education

“Live your life from your heart. Share from your heart.And your story will touch and heal people's souls.”~Melody BeattieWith gratitude, I acknowledge the people who generously shared their story for you to experience.Maybe yours is similar, maybe not. Regardless of what brings us here to the same place in this book, wehave something in common. Soul. Soul is what makes us tear up when we see someone overcome agreat obstacle. Soul is what puts that lump in our throat when we feel such empathy for another’sstruggles. Soul is what helps us to see a little bit of ourselves, plus a little bit of miracle, in people wemeet.It was my privilege to compile these stories into this book. Through the process, I realized that none of us are simply walking horizontally through life for our own purpose. Our journeys are incrediblyintertwined. I read more than once that the people who thought they were doing the helping, were infact on the receiving end…they would never be the same because of a chance crossing of paths with thepeople who supposedly “needed them”. I read about incredible triumphs and celebrations as well assorrow and reflection. The love of families and the rainbow of emotions made it clear that uniting andovercoming is far better than dividing and conquering. A common denominator was “believing.” Thebiggest gift you can give people is to transparently believe in them. And whether you hear a soft whisperor a loud bellow, your inner voice must tell you to believe…believe bigger than you think you are, believethe power is within you, believe you can go one more day…This book is called Rainbows and Butterflies. Rainbows cannot come out without the rain. In fact, theembrace of a rainbow spreads colorfully across the sky when the

sun shines through the rain

. We treasurethat the rainbow has several different colors – and we value that each color proudly

shines its own light

.Butterflies are not born with wings. In fact, they are born with little hope of ever leaving the ground – thatis if they decide to remain a caterpillar. How sad it would be if the caterpillar believed he would neverflutter atop the flowers. Instead, he

grows the wings that were always within him

, takes a leap of faith,and soars. While we work through our own personal journeys:

May we be the hand the reaches out and the smile that stretches wide.May we share our words of encouragement for the ones who’ve tried and tried.May we be the message of hope and the voice that easily sings.May we cherish our own colors of the rainbow and spread our growing wings.

~Marnee Brick, November 2009

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TinyEYE makes a positive difference in children’s lives by connecting them with specialized speech-languagepathologists. Our therapists serve children around the world by meeting with them, educators, andcaregivers via TinyEYE’s on-line therapy office. Through this on-line connection, children enjoy qualityspeech therapy services regardless of where they live. We help children to understand what they hear, tospeak so that others understand them, and to use their voice to share their ideas; their wishes; their stories.In addition to providing on-line therapy and supervision services, TinyEYE’s outreach team visits communitiesto complete assessments and support programming needs.TinyEYE believes in children. Because we understand the heart of a child, we care so much that wecontribute to its contentment. Because we understand the fragile self-concept of a child, we care so muchthat we contribute to building self-esteem. And because we understand the value of our service, we care somuch about contributing in a way that is relevant and important to the life of each child. We grow smiles,mend spirits, and engage children in their lives…just like Operation Smile.TinyEYE is raising funds to help Operation Smile

. Our goal is to grow over 40 smiles by giving Operation Smile $10000 by December 31, 2010.

Watch our donations grow athttp://support.operationsmile.org/goto/TinyEYE.Operation Smile provides free surgeries to repair cleft lip, cleft palate and otherfacial deformities for children around the globe. Every three minutes, a child is bornwith a cleft condition. A cleft is an opening in the lip, the roof of the mouth or thesoft tissue in the back of the mouth. Untreated, it often leaves a child unable to eat,speak, socialize or smile. In some places these children are shunned and rejected. Intoo many cases, parents cannot afford to give them the surgeries they need to live anormal life.Thanks to the generosity and spirit of volunteerism shown by supporters, OperationSmile heals thousands of children per year and, today, more than 135,000 girls andboys have a new chance at a new life.

Healing children's smiles. Making the world a better place.

http://www.operationsmile.org/