I don’t know about you, but this month has seemed more full of extra piles of unexpected stuff than it was bloomin’ with floral delights? Maybe it’s just me, but the challenges-of-the-month I’d imagined were challenges-of-my-chosing: things like finally digging in to May’s full garden of events more properly, cleaning up my beds-of-awareness, here (so to speak) and re-landscaping the blog, planting more posts, maybe burying some ‘bulbs’ to get some awareness blooming on some more social media sites and such. Ahh, the “best-laid plans” of awareness-advocates & figurative-gardeners?;) Instead, my May brought the makings of a rather well-endowed pile worthy of “Learn About Composting Day” if you know what I mean. Between the flower-analogy and the changed-expectations topic, it brings to mind “Welcome to Holland” (in a whole lesser-way, as this a piece most-often used in disability/special needs communities, but I meant to mention it on #SpecialSaturday a couple of weeks ago, & didn’t get around to it, so why not now?). But I digress …as usual …but at least “digress” has the word “dig” in it!
As frustrating as it might be to deal with compost-worthy inconveniences like spare time that’s sucked away by extra work, or dealing with difficult people, or having problems drop into your lap with no immediate solutions, or passing around some sort of spring cold/flu, or dealing with the wild wacky weather or whatever it may be… it’s really all a relatively lovely floral bouquet or even a especially-diminutive nosegay compared to the massive ‘manure’ which others are dealing with day-in & day-out with no end in sight. Whether it’s due to illness or disability issues, abuses or other human rights issues, addictions, poverty &/or hunger, losses of all sorts or a combination of some of those plus other issues, there are people dealing with some unimaginably overwhelming things out there every day. It seems like some people/families have really had more than their share of you-know-what lately, too (I just recently heard — via an online community — of a family which has 3 adult siblings who each have cancer, for example).
The point that comes to mind, though (and, yep, I do have one …or two! …though you may need to brush away some debris to get to them, usually) is that even if we aren’t capable of creating some instant flowery pest-less utopia, we can probably still plant a few seeds of some sort right where we are (& speaking of “not being able” I’d like to interject a mention of @Nisha360’s #IamDisabled campaign, since I haven’t gotten to it the way I’d have liked to, yet). Even a momentary mention of an issue or event can go far in making a difference: I believe that, or I wouldn’t still be here! Plus, goodness knows, if you drop a seed into a barren stinky pile of manure, it can really take off and thrive! It was not so many years ago that I didn’t have a clue that there even was a Childhood Cancer Awareness Month (Sept) or that Congenital Heart Defects Awareness Day was held on Valentine’s Day, much less what ‘Day’ or ‘Week’ it was …and, more importantly, what these children and their parents and siblings go through… and what all the other people are going through, which those awareness events relate to. Each time we merely mention one of these issues or events to others, it’s a seed of awareness which can grow. It’s been especially-heartening to see everyone helping to spread those seeds, on Twitter, lately. Those seeds of awareness can grow into things like more research and funding for new treatments for illnesses, less stigma and more understanding and compassion for people dealing with various things, greater personal perspectives and contentment and fulfillment, and even more peace within our homes as well as universally as our understanding and discovery of common grounds and goals leads to friendships with others in different countries. As Melinda Marchiano has affirmed “…little things ARE the big things!”
So (after much ado about somethings), I wanted to at least semi-update the Month of May events post before next year rolls around: I hadn’t updated it since 2009, and there are a number of very important awareness observances missing (presumably because I, myself, wasn’t aware of them then, yet), such as ALS Awareness Month, Brain Tumor Awareness Month, Lupus Awareness Month and many more. Maybe someone will discover a ‘seed’ in here that they can plant and nurture, before next year? So, in my typical fashion, I’m posting this rather ex-post facto, at the end of the month & spinning it to appear as if I’m way ahead of the game… ‘though, if #IamDisabled, in that, I’m hoping that it’ll also go to prove the point that awareness is year-round and that one woman is not an island (i.e. there’s no way I could make a big difference on my own; but with each of us doing a wee-bit, we can ‘Johnny Appleseed’ [that’s a verb, right?] the globe in no-time!). 🙂 And, if “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” we just may see some more cures and prevention and solutions in our lifetimes.
May is “Gifts from the Garden” month, and the last couple days have been (among other things) “Water a Flower Day” and “What You Think Upon Grows Day.” What kind of global garden of awareness do you imagine we might all grow, if we keep planting seeds of awareness each day, and nurturing them?
Thanks for being here and helping to get the word out about things. It matters. YOU matter! Each seed you plant and flower you water and shovelful of manure you spread makes a difference (okay, well that last part could go either way, & I hope you don’t have to deal with too much of it, but you know…)! 🙂
Without further ado (’cause there’s been way too much ‘do’ already, aye?!)… Here’s May’s redone “Months” listing. Hopefully I’ll add in the remaining links (and figure out why my nicely spaced stuff keeps getting kicked out…), someday (for now, I guess I’ll just chalk it up to some ‘manure’ in the ‘garden’?).
May is…
The MONTH of MAY is…
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Awareness Month
(aka Lou Gehrig’s Disease)
Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
American Stroke Month
American Wetlands Month
Arthritis Awareness Month
Asian American and Pacific Islander’s Heritage Month
Asthma & Allergy Awareness Month, National
(also Asthma Awareness Month)
Asthma & Allergy Foundation of America
Mothers of Asthmatics
Awareness of Medical Orphans Month
Better Hearing & Speech Month, National
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
The Starkey Hearing Foundation
Better Sleep Month
Borderline Personality Disorder Month
Brain Cancer Research Month
Brain Tumor Awareness Month
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) Awareness Month
Note: @May12th is an International Awareness Day for ME/CFS, MCS, & Fibromyalgia
Commit to Get Fit Month
Correct Posture Month
American Chiropractic Association
Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month
Creative Beginnings Month
Eco-Driving Month
Freedom Shrine Month
Garden for Wildlife Month
Get Caught Reading Month
Gifts from the Garden Month
Global Employee Health and Fitness Month
Go Fetch! Food Drive for Homeless Animals Month
Haitian Heritage Month
Heal the Children Month
Healthy Vision Month
Hepatitis Awareness Month, National
Hepatitis Foundation International
Huntington’s Disease Awareness Month
Huntington’s Disease Society of America
Jewish-American Heritage Month
Latino Books Month
Lyme Disease Awareness Month
Lupus Awareness Month
Motorcycle Safety Month
National Arthritis Month
National Bike Month
National Breathe Easy Month
(AKA Clean Air Month)
National Building Safety Month
National Cancer Research Month
National Celiac Disease Awareness Month
National Digestive Diseases Awareness Month
American Gastroenterological Association
National Family Month (Mother’s Day to Father’s Day)
National Family Wellness Month
National Fibromyalgia Education and Awareness Month
The National Fibromyalgia Association
National Foster Care Month
National High Blood Pressure Education Month
(&/or aka National Blood Pressure Awareness Month)
National Heart Lung & Blood Institute
National Inventor’s Month
National Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month
American Academy of Dermatology
National Meditation Month
National Mediterranean Diet Month
National Mental Health Month
(formerly known as the National Mental Health Association)
National Military Appreciation Month
National Neurofibromatosis Awareness Month
National Osteoporosis Awareness & Prevention Month
National Osteoporosis Foundation
National Physical Fitness and Sports Month
The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
National Preservation Month
National Safety Dose Awareness Month
National Stroke Awareness Month
National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month
National Toxic Encephalopathy & Chemical Injury Awareness Month
National Youth Traffic Safety Month
National Teen Pregnancy Awareness Month
National Trauma Awareness Month
Neuro-Immune Disease Awareness Month
Whittemore Peterson Institute
May NID Awareness Month
Older Americans Month
Pediatric Stroke Awareness Month
Children’s Hemiplegia and Stroke Association (CHASA)
The Julianna Rose Childrens Hemiplegia And Stroke Foundation’s FB Page
Personal History Awareness Month
Prepare Tomorrow’s Parents Month (Mother’s Day to Father’s Day)
REACT Month
Revise Your Work Schedule Month
Sight-Saving Month
Strike Out Strokes Month
Ultraviolet Awareness & Home Eye Safety Month
(aka Ultraviolet or UV Awareness Month)
Tay-Sachs and Canavan Diseases Month
Teen CEO Month
Teen Self-Esteem Month
Tourette Syndrome Awareness Month (5/13-6/17)
Tuberous Sclerosis Awareness Month
Women’s Health Care Month
The National Women’s Health Information Center
Young Achievers/Leaders of Tomorrow Month
INTERNATIONAL OBSERVANCES:
Community Living Month (Ontario, Canada)
Hughes Syndrome Awareness Month (UK)
International Awareness Month for ME/CFS, MCS and Fibromyalgia
(&/or aka International ME Awareness Month)
International Civility Awareness Month
International Respect for Chickens Month (via Australia)
International Victorious Woman Month
Miracle Month (Australia)
Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month (Canada)
National Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Month (Australia)
National Physiotherapy Month (Canada)
National Smile Month (UK: 20 May – 20 June)
National Walking Month (UK)
NF Awareness Month (Australia)
Save A Baby Month (UK)
Vision Health Month (Canada)
World Lyme Disease Awareness Month
PS Someday I may figure out how to manage the fonts/formatting, in WordPress (please don’t hold your breath, ‘though …I wouldn’t want anyone to pass out or asphyxiate)!
“What potent blood hath modest May.” – Ralph W. Emerson
NOTE: Blue-/purple-colored words on the Care-Aware blog-posts contain clickable links to related websites for more awareness information. Clicking on them will open up the pages in a new window/tab.
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