Our children are our future. Show them how to be the light.
Be honest with them. Educate them and encourage discussion. Let them make their own decisions, but show them how to look at all sides instead of jumping to conclusions. Teach them to have an open and honest conversation. It's ok to disagree, but respect is huge.
Before you know it, you'll have great human beings ready to stand with you. When you've shown them how to be that light, it helps expel the darkness.
Most importantly, strive to be the person you want them to be. Nobody succeeds every day, but they need to see us try. They are our future and our light, but we are their world.
Best of luck, Fren.
Illinois isn't that blue. There are small pockets in major college towns but the rest is deep red.
Selected, not elected.
I recommend lots of faith and avoid hopium. And happies.
First off, know that faith doesn't always mean religion. It's important to have faith in yourself and know that you did the best in everything you do. Making that my focus has helped. Doing that encourages you to give back to the world. Did you hold the door for the person behind you? Did you get someone pickup their armful of stuff or just walk by? Sometimes we get lost in the big picture and ignore the little things right in front of us.
When I'm overwhelmed, I count my happies. I start by counting everything that's overwhelming me and not going right. For everything I find wrong in my life, I require myself to find double the amount of good things, which are my happies. Anything good is worth counting, even if it's petty. You heard a song you like on the radio. You watched someone you don't like trip. Literally, anything. This reminds me how blessed I truly am and helps me put it into perspective. It lets me air the negative because you absolutely can't ignore it. But you also can't let it win. Every single day, we all have negative impacts on our lives. But we also have good.
I wish you luck in your internal battles.
Possibly? The date on the indictment is April 2021.
Thanks!
This guy has been part of the Chicago machine for decades. The indictment mentions dates back to at least 2011 and has juicy tidbits like Alderman A and Law Firm A. The alderman was specified to work with the FBI for the investigation but the law firm makes me think that this is just the start.
I don't think he'll name names, but he's done enough they'll nail him on at least some of the charges. There's 22 charges in the indictment.
Governor Fat Head is trying to distance himself but the Madigan indictment mentions items going back to 2011 so it's well before Pritzger's turn in office.
“I am fully committed to eradicate the scourge of corruption from our political system, and today’s indictment is an important step in cleaning up Illinois,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, said in a statement.
I look forward to the day the entire Pritzger family gets indicated!
22 total counts. Corruption including racketeering, bribery and attempted extortion. Typical Illinois politics.
My favorite parts include things like Alderman A that worked with the FBI. Law firm A is another good one. Sounds like they're not done yet!
Seeing a face wearing a smile while standing in the door of a plane is infinitely better than the shirt. Love it!
NGL, when I saw the thumbnail, I immediately crossed my fingers and chanted to the meme gods, "please be real please be real please be real". I expected fake, but I'm always willing to hope for the best. Thanks for the chuckle!
Sometimes it's not about home school being too hard. My son is excessively bright academically, but lagging socially. The social interaction he gets at school is a lesson I can't provide. Fortunately, I'm blessed to have an awesome public school with based teachers.
As a parent, I'll teach my kid to stand for freedom until the day I die. But I'd take a bullet (or a shot) for my kid any day of his life. He's more important than me. I don't know what this woman's circumstances were, but it sounds like she weighed heavily before making her fatal choice.
Sounds like you've been able to skirt the issue of a hard choice for the vaccine as well as my family. Prayers for you that it stays that way.
Bless you for your service as well as those at home that supported you!
I didn't jump to murder, but I wondered what they were made to do. 10th Mt is often first in/last out.
No bubbles burst here. Just sadness and prayers for those on the front lines.
From a wrestling mom to a hockey dad, man those visits are the worst. I volunteered to show the video and he's still in gear, but yeah, I'll leave the room so you can interrogate my kid about if he's beat at home. 🙄
Honestly, sports injuries taught us to have more confident in when to go and when not to go for medical attention. I'm grateful the only broken bones we even dealt with were a myriad of noses!
Her smile is quite gleeful - her excitement is palpable and I love it!
I'm not sure I agree they're blue. Possibly purple, but fraudulent for sure. If Springfield is truly blue, there would be less state government offices in Chicago.
I would love to see a full audit of our state entirely down the ballot.
He needs to request to have written orders to take it.
I haven't been able to verify this, but allegedly the written orders would put some liability on the person that signed said orders. It would likely just be a stall tactic, but it's worth a shot. (Pun not intended.) In the meantime, please encourage him to do as much as possible to boost his immune system.
I'm in a similar situation with my brother. Prayers for all of our super heroes currently struggling with this situation.
Constitutionally, he can serve 2 terms but 10 years. That means we have to wait for a bit for the dust to settle.
Military during tribunals until 2022. Then and only then can Trump step back in. Then we can have Trump 2024 for the grand finale.
Be strong! Our kids are worth it!
Just remember the right path is rarely the easy one. Your kids are watching and you are absolutely setting the right example!
The best emotional high after I spoke at mine? The teachers stopping me and saying THANK YOU. Definitely worth it!
Any time I get "that look" from people wearing a mask, I smile as big as I can and tell them to have a blessed day. Most smile back. Those that don't, I chalk up to the permanently lost.
Fortunately, we're not locked down here yet but I have started seeing more masks (south-central Illinois). I don't expect it to go as planned if they lock us down again. Despite school mask mandates, several schools in the state are standing up. We all need to keep standing and smiling showing them we aren't afraid.
Oh my Lord yes. I was literally shaking and stumbled over my words a couple times. But I had my speech written and I waffle stomped the anxiety down the drain and did it! I'm still riding high on the personal win!
Cumberland so we're south central. More and more are standing up every day!
Forgot to mention savederek.com! Derek Pearcy is from Shelbyville and has a map of current schools in Illinois. It's expanding rapidly and he's trying to keep up with it, but be patient if it's not 100% accurate yet. He's got some great tips and inspired me.
I actually posted my speech in another reply if you'd like to read it. We also had an engineer talking about the filtration of masks versus the size of the virus. He spoke first, followed by me and then the head of our local unmasked group. She touched on the social damages of masking children. Others followed offering support to our board.
I'm fortunate that none of ours want the masks but feel obligated to follow the mandate. I recommend reaching out to your board members first.
Just remember to be passionate and respectful without putting a ton of emotion in it. The I just don't like them argument will never win.
We play that audio at least a couple of times a year in my house. I absolutely adore love when my 8 year old quotes it!