"We see so many tears turn into smiles."

Before I even begin, I need to form a disclaimer. There is absolutely NO way I could give last week's Honors Forum, the speaker Kay Parker, or her place of volunteerism (The Healing Place) justice. I was already impressed when Dr. Brewton said she had been speaking to Honors Program students for six years AND she was selected as the 2007 Shoals Woman of the Year. I've noticed there are quite a few women in the Shoals area, so that honor spoke volumes (and her speech only solidified it.)

I was enthralled "hook, line, and sinker" when she began by saying she was going to read her speech off of notecards: "I want to be sure I say everything I need and want to say." I was honestly moved more by Mrs. Parker's commitment and fluidity to speak about her faith than anything else presented to me that day. The words and phrases she used throughout her speech were literally too good not to quote, so I'm sorry (you may have heard them already) but here it goes:

"The world is waiting for you to do what you are good at."
"It helps to be crazy. It keeps you from being insane."
 "Forget perfect."
"What would you do for a living if you didn't get paid for it. Dream for a minute."
"Stress, pain, grief? Draw it out. Talk it out. Cry it out. Pray it out." 
"Grief is pain of the heart; it assigns itself to our entire body, not just a leg."
"It's easy to complain about what is wrong."

There honestly could not have been a better week for me to hear this speech. On Monday night, I was still living off the high of the great weekend I had with my family the days before. The words were easy to hear, but I realize that words are just that, easy to say and to hear. It's simple to say that you are going to change, that things are going to be different, or that you are going to refrain from a behavior that dominates your personality. I could have told you Monday night that I would take the words Mrs. Parker used and apply them to my behavior throughout the week, but realistically, I probably wouldn't make it past Tuesday afternoon. Oprah knew her stuff when she said she needed to find someone who would ride with her in the taxi, not just in the limo.

But what good is a speech if you don't apply any of the new material to your life? Mrs. Parker amazed me because she admitted that at moments in her life she cried out to God. She questioned God. Most people don't admit that they question their faith, but she spoke in a sincere and genuine way unmatched by any speaker I have ever heard. By being so open, she established immediate rapport within the room, and I doubt anyone left the room without a good feeling about The Healing Place. It's definitely somewhere I will think about volunteering this semester.

I'll end this with one last quote; it's something that I am pretty sure I paraphrased in my "About Me" section on Facebook that was updated right after I moved to Florence last fall..I love connections...."I don't know where I'm going, but I'm on my way."