Davidson Dances into the Elite Eight!

We did it! Now with 25 straight wins, the longest in the NCAA right now, Davidson advances to the Elite Eight to play Kansas on Sunday.

Final Score: Davidson 73, Wisconsin 56

Quite frankly, we seemed to glide through this game easier than we did against Gonzaga or Georgetown. Still, Mom and I were cheering and whooping and hollering and on the edge of our seats--especially for the entire first half when the score stayed especially close, ending the half tied. This team is so much fun to watch! (Although Asher didn't seem to notice or chip in to cheer.) What makes them so fun to watch is the great coaching, the 'smart' ball-playing, and the great teamwork.

Why can't I stop writing about Davidson basketball? Because, for me, it's not just about basketball. So far this year, I've felt exceptionally blue. Watching the basketball games has filled me with so much joy. I was able to watch the Georgetown game with Dad, bringing back memories of going to basketball games with him starting in fourth grade when he first introduced me to the sport. Oh how many women's basketball games we've been to together over the years--not to mention the games of HORSE we played and those darned Hoop Shoot contests he entered me in. I love listening to his running commentary! Tonight, I was able to watch the Davidson game in its entirety with Mom. After the game tonight, I recalled feeling this excited and engaged as a child attending basketball games.

JOY. Let me say that again. JOY! I have not felt much joy of late. I'm not sure why it's taken a Davidson basketball team in the NCAA tournament to give me a bit of joy, but it has. That's why I'm so busy writing about Davidson and not all of the health issues weighing on my mind. Sometimes I forget the gift of a little fun and escapism. Thank you Davidson Wildcats for giving me something to feel good about!

Game Day Highlights:

1. The sportscaster made a comment in regards to phenomenal player, Stephen Curry--the player with the softest shot (and a baby face to go with it!):

"When you run into hot Curry you get burned." Not quite the same as Dr. ANS's comment, "Would you like some Curry with that dish?" but certainly equally as funny.

2. Carrie's voicemail message after the game:

"Oh my gosh I almost went into labor. And then I almost had a heart attack during that game. That was amazing. I cannot believe...I cannot believe it. And that's the first game I've actually seen. That Stephen Curry is amazing. Amazing! Proud to be a Davidson grad today. Hope you are too."

It is important to note here Carrie's Wisconsin accent as well as her theatrics (Miss Yale School of Drama), which both culminated to make this message extra-hilarious. Poor, poor Britt. Britt--it's a good thing you didn't wager too much. Or did you wager your pride and self-worth? Carrie was quite torn between WI and Davidson.

3. I called the Davidson bookstore today to order Sweet Sixteen T-shirts in RED (great for us pale folk). I spoke with an older woman working there, who despite how overwhelmed she was, treated me with that gracious Southern hospitality and that sense that she was not at all in a hurry. (The Davidson bookstore averages $1700 in sales a day (equal to the number of students on campus!). When Sweet Sixteen T-shirts went on sale March 26th they had $35,000 in sales in one day. When I asked her if Davidson had cancelled classes today (since so many students had gone to Detroit for the game) she said, "Oh no! The president was on national television today saying that we wouldn't be cancelling classes and wouldn't be known as that type of school." Oh good grief! I think it takes an ice storm to get them to cancel--and maybe not even then!

I have 'justified' this ridiculous expenditure on T-shirts by noting that I have not purchased any Davidson 'gear' since before college graduation 10 years ago. The shirt I'm wearing today? It's been handed over to Mom. And it's now 14 years old--the very first Davidson shirt I ever owned which we received on our first day as incoming freshman. It's still HUGE, so it must not have been sent through that Davidson laundry service that all of the commentators and journalists can't get enough of. Do they know that everything is washed in HOT and dried on HOT? There are many pants I never fit into again after a trip through that laundry service! It's good for sheets and towels and that's about it!

4. I was able to watch the game from start to finish without going into an absolute ANS spell. I didn't feel great, but I DID it. And I tell you, my adrenaline was going like crazy the whole time. It was so much fun! I'm so grateful I got to watch this game the whole way through without having to stop because I felt too sick. I've not been able to sit in my recliner in the living room and do this for over 3 years. Hurray! Now, whether or not I will sleep tonight or how I will feel tomorrow is a completely different scenario!

It's a Great Day to Be a Wildcat!!!

(I like this slogan, but the shirt it was on was white. UGH!)

Next Game:

Davidson vs. Kansas

Detroit, MI

Sunday March 30, 2008

5:05 PM

CBS

A very happy Wildcat,

Emily

Photo: Until 'new' Davidson gear arrives--this is the best I could do! I think I will ask for a sweatshirt as a birthday gift this year! :)

Wow! For My Davidson Friends (and Fans)...

Hello to all of you, especially my Davidson friends, who are most likely to take time to read these articles! :) I'm just blown away by this news. It's pretty overwhelming, exciting, and just plain cool.

I have to tell you all though, that it was Jeannine who scouted out all this news and then I saw it on my little ESPN Davidson Bball widget. I got a good laugh when Jeannine (my best friend from high school and NOT a Davidson grad) told me she'd spent her lunch break reading up on Stephen Curry and Davidson's latest boost to such celebrity status. I think last week Stephen Curry's name was the 4Th most googled name for the week! Crazy!

Haha to that celebrity status part. I went to the urologist today and 'borrowed back' from my mom that original T-shirt we all got on our very first day at Davidson--you know--the gray one withe Davidson written in black, a red line underneath, and 1998 written on the sleeve. (Clearly I must not have sent that one to the laundry service if it's still in good shape 14 years later?).

Anyways, I was determined that on ONE outing from my house, even if it was only to the doctor, that I would share my Davidson pride. Alas, all interactions took place with women who knew nothing of basketball. The urologist said to me, "All I know about basketball is that the ball is orange."

However, since the nursing staff all know me so well, they attempted to lift my spirits by recruiting one of the rheumatologists (and big basketball fan) to head on over to my exam room and 'talk basketball' with me. The nurse says, "Hey, she went to Dickinson!" And I said, "NO! Davidson," thinking all along, here we go again with this Dickinson/Denison thing.

Well, the doctor was a student at Vandy medical school way back in the days of Lefty Driesel and remembered Vandy beating Duke, UNC and Davidson in 1969 or 1966? Can't remember what he said. Anyways, he remembered them being a powerhouse and was excited to say, "It's been a long time for them and they're doing great!" Then he turned to all of the nurses and said, "Davidson is a very good small liberal arts college." Yippee!!!!!! That sooo made my day. I'm so tired of doctors thinking I am stupid. Maybe I should make a t-shirt of some snotty sort to wear specifically for appointments.

Anyways, no medical talk here. I'll share the bladder results in another blog for those of you not squeamish about medical speak. For now, I'm leaving this blog all to the fun of Davidson!

Enjoy the game tonight!!!! Soak up the glory!

Special love and hugs to my Davidson pals. Davidson may have been a very challenging and difficult four years of my life--but it gave me so much, including all of you.

Much love and blessings,

Emily

Life is beautiful with Davidson's generosity
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=forde_pat&id=3315722&sportCat=ncb

DETROIT -- Davidson center Thomas Sander was halfway through his senior economics seminar Wednesday afternoon when a fellow student excitedly raised his hand.

"I've got a pretty cool announcement," the guy said to the class. And then he read the e-mail that had just dropped from college president Tom Ross, containing the coolest invitation in the history of March Madness:

If you're a Davidson student, the Sweet 16 is on us. And you're all invited.

"Everyone was going crazy, saying 'I'm going to Detroit!'" Sander recalled.

"I think the whole community recognizes the level of commitment and effort by the basketball team to be able to reach this level while still maintaining their academic standing. This is a gesture of appreciation."
--John McCartney, member of the board of trustees

College kids love free stuff. But a free trip -- tickets, hotel and a bus ride included -- to see your Cinderella school play Big Ten champion Wisconsin in a once-a-generation NCAA tournament game? This was better than Ed McMahon showing up at your door with a Publishers Clearing House check.

"It's unbelievably generous of the trustees," said Davidson freshman Kevin Hubbard, who talked to me by phone from campus Thursday. "They really did not have to do this."
That's the key point here: They did not have to do this, but they did it anyway. No other school still playing in this tournament would.


This was a spectacular act of pure goodwill in a sport that has become so coldly mercenary it threatens to lose some of its abundant charm. Just about everything in College Sports Inc. is sponsored, logo'd, seat-licensed, underwritten or overpriced -- and the first casualty of the money grab has been the peers of the athletes themselves.

In gymnasiums and football stadiums across the country, students are herded into the cheap seats while the prime locations go to boosters and donors who can be gouged for tens of thousands of dollars. Or students get hit with athletic fees as part of their tuition to help pay for the latest phat facility or colossal contract extension for the coach.


Here in Detroit, they've rejiggered the standard basketball-in-a-dome seating plan to sell more tickets. About 57,000 seats have been sold as of 5 p.m. Thursday at Ford Field for the games Friday night. The good news is that more fans will be in the building than ever before at a regional semifinal. The bad news is that there are more bad seats than ever before.

Among the school allotments, many universities take care of the fat cats first. Students? Hey, if some of you can make it, great. You'll get a few tickets. But don't expect the school to do anything for you along the way.

Then along came No. 10 seed Davidson, basking in the glow of a surprising run and willing to share some of the reflected glory. Members of the school's board of trustees are digging into their own pockets for about $100,000 to provide at least five buses, 250 tickets and 125 hotel rooms for the student body to see their Wildcats.


Because it's the right thing to do.


What a beautiful counterconcept.

"The sense of intimacy that exists on our campus is unparalleled in NCAA Division I basketball," coach Bob McKillop said. "You hear all about the free laundry [a laundry service is offered to all Davidson students]. But when the board of trustees votes in a meeting on Tuesday to go into their personal pockets and put out the money so that every student can go to this game … that reaches a level that's unprecedented.


"I'm stunned by it. Thrilled by it."

So was everyone else on the campus. The news crackled like sheet lightning across the small liberal arts enclave of 1,700 students located 30 miles outside Charlotte.
Athletic director Jim Murphy heard a student say, "The library is going crazy." So was the student union. And the dorms.


The only catch was that the school needed an RSVP from each student by 4 p.m. Wednesday.

That put some urgency into the student body.

"Everyone ran to their computers," said Hubbard, a freshman from Queens, N.Y.

Brenda Fuentes, a sophomore from Long Island, got the e-mail on her phone at 2:23 p.m. on Wednesday. She and two of her friends dashed to the computer lab, sending in their RSVP at 2:42.

"Whether or not we have gotten to the Sweet 16 or won 28 games, we have won because we've lived up to our belief."
--Bob McKillop

But a lot of students didn't hear about the offer until after 4. By 6 p.m. at the president's office, staffers had received 450 requests and still had about 700 unread e-mails.


"I'm surprised the wireless didn't crash on campus," Murphy said.

The only downside of this story is that the offer became too much of a good thing. Davidson couldn't come up with nearly enough buses in 24 hours to accommodate demand. Buses will roll from campus at 6 Friday morning and return sometime early Monday morning -- why not think you're playing two, right? -- but the school won't be able to transport two-thirds of the student body after all.


"The response is overwhelming," said Davidson trustees chairman John McCartney. "More overwhelming than the logistics of getting the kids up there. It's too bad the suggestion [from a fellow trustee] didn't come until Tuesday. I wish I had thought of it on my own, and I wish I had thought of it earlier."

Having thought of it at all is part of what sets Davidson apart from the Sweet 16 crowd. Athletics and academics are so well-entwined at the school that there is no disconnect between the athletes and those who cheer them on.


Brenda Fuentes describes herself as a good friend of star guard Stephen Curry. They have classes together. See each other on campus all the time.

She said she ran into Curry on campus Tuesday, after he'd become the face of Madness by scoring 70 points in upsets of Gonzaga and Georgetown. Curry told her that over the weekend he got 1,800 new friend requests on his Facebook page.


"You're a big shot," Fuentes teased. "Can you still hang out with us little people?"

At Davidson, they're all little people. That's the charm.


They offer 21 intercollegiate sports at Davidson, so a good number of students are participating in something. They also offer zero jock majors at a school known for its academic rigor.

"Davidson is a place where nearly a quarter of our kids participate in intercollegiate athletics, and they're in a very, very demanding academic environment," McCartney said. "I think the whole community recognizes the level of commitment and effort by the basketball team to be able to reach this level while still maintaining their academic standing. This is a gesture of appreciation."

The players deserve the appreciation, but do not overlook their coach. McKillop, a longtime New York high school coach who is now in his 19th season at Davidson, was producing chills Thursday while talking about this breakthrough season.


"I don't know that I could ever imagine the feeling that this would generate on our campus, in our community and within me personally," McKillop said, eyes glistening for a moment. "I am at ease now in my life. I have never been more at ease, more comfortable, more grounded than where I am right now.

"I think it's a response to the pursuit of something and seeing it happening right in front of your eyes, knowing the investment and realizing how many people were part of this investment, and now are sharing in this investment."


Later, in a hallway outside the Davidson locker room, McKillop invoked the final scene of the movie "Life Is Beautiful" ("La Vita e Bella," in the original Italian), a heartbreaking World War II concentration camp story. A father sacrifices his life so that his son can endure the horrors of internment and ultimately escape, and the boy rides away joyfully atop an American tank in the closing scene, thinking he has won a game.

The father prevailed. That's what McKillop loved.


"Whether or not we have gotten to the Sweet 16 or won 28 games, we have won because we've lived up to our belief," McKillop said of Davidson's improbable rise to this position. "We did not surrender. Our world today is full of surrender at the first sign of a challenge to people's hopes and dreams. We did not surrender."

There will be no surrender from Davidson Friday night. Be sure of that. And no surrender from the hundreds of Davidson students who are at Ford Field thanks to the largesse of a school that gets it, money be damned.


Pat Forde is a senior writer for ESPN.com. He can be reached at ESPN4D@aol.com.


Davidson is providing transportation, lodging, tickets to game
Associated Press

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/ncaatourney08/news/story?id=3314342

RALEIGH, N.C. -- It's a free-for-all at Davidson College.


Thanks to the deep pockets of the school's Board of Trustees, nearly 300 students will travel to Detroit to watch their beloved men's basketball team continue its surprising run in the NCAA tournament Friday night.

Students are getting bus transportation, two nights lodging and a ticket to see Davidson play Wisconsin in the Midwest Regional -- all for free.


Trustees pledged Wednesday to pay for any student. Within a day, 275 students -- nearly 20 percent of the student body -- had signed up. That sent officials at the small liberal-arts college, located about 20 miles north of Charlotte and about 650 miles south of Detroit, scrambling.

"The response was tremendous and frankly, surprisingly large," school spokeswoman Stacey Schmeidel said Thursday. "We actually have a lot more students who want to go, but we're trying to find more buses."


Behind sophomore sensation Stephen Curry, Davidson upset Gonzaga and Georgetown last week for the school's first NCAA tournament wins in 39 years. Curry, the son of NBA sharpshooter Dell Curry, has led the Wildcats to a 28-6 season they hope to extend Friday.

Curry hit eight of 10 3-pointers and scored 40 points in Davidson's upset of Gonzaga in the first round of the NCAA's Midwest Regional. Two days later, Curry scored 30 points to send Davidson past Georgetown and into the Sweet 16 for the first time in almost four decades.

When students learned they could witness Curry and the Wildcats in person, they jumped, even though the seven buses pull out at 5 a.m. for the 11-hour trip.

Davidson coach Bob McKillop credited the enthusiasm not only to the Wildcats' success but to the size and atmosphere of Davidson, a private school with about 1,700 students.

"The sense of intimacy that exists on our campus is unparalleled in NCAA Division I basketball," McKillop said Thursday as he and the team prepared in Detroit.

"But when the Board of Trustees votes in a meeting on Thursday to go into their personal pockets and put out the money so that every student can go to this game with a free bus ride, free hotel room, and free game ticket, that reaches a level that's unprecedented.


"I'm stunned by it, thrilled by it."

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

Davidson Dances to the Sweet Sixteen! Go Wildcats!

Davidson coach Bob McKillop clasps his hands in the second half of a second-round NCAA Midwest Regional basketball game against Georgetown in Raleigh, N.C., Sunday, March 23, 2008. Davidson won 74-70. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Davidson's Stephen Curry, left, celebrates with teammate Jason Richards (2) following Davidson's 74-70 win over Georgetown in a second-round NCAA Midwest Regional basketball game in Raleigh, N.C., Sunday, March 23, 2008. Curry had 30 points and Richards added 20 in the upset win. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

It's a great day to be a Wildcat. Indeed. AP Photo/Mel Evans

(Photos copied from ESPN website)

How about that Davidson Basketball team??? We're in the Sweet Sixteen baby!

Go Wildcats!

Other than a following a couple of sports, I really don't pay much attention to them. Usually, I have to ask who's playing in the Super Bowl--and often multiple times--before I remember. A big football game is on? Jeannine calls and says, "You watching the big game tonight?" only to wait for my response of, "What game?" so that she can laugh her hearty laugh, sigh, and proclaim, "Oh Em, what are we going to do with you?"

But this week, sports fan or not, I'm paying attention. Paying attention to Davidson in the NCAA tournament that is. We all are I think. My Davidson friends are sending articles and emails back and forth. My non-Davidson friends have a sudden interest and excitement in Davidson basketball. They're emailing me, "What a game! Go Wildcats!" And this week, I really needed a joyful distraction like some great Davidson basketball and the fun conversations with friends and family as a result.

Davidson entered the tournament as the 10Th seed in the Midwest region. First they beat 7Th seeded Gonzaga to move onto the second round where they defeated the 2nd seeded Georgetown. Thanks to my dad who began taking me to games in fourth grade and teaching me to shoot hoops, I actually have some understanding of basketball. I might even venture to say that my understanding of this sport is better than that of Jeannine!

Even my ANS specialist brought up Davidson basketball in our last phone consult. Then, in a follow-up email he wrote: "So, enjoy the Davidson game (I have a line for the sportscasters to use: "would you like some Curry with that dish?" ... OK, now back to my real job)..." Sorry, but I thought it was hilarious.

And, how about that Stephen Curry? And Jason Richards? And Bob McKillop? And that little team from that little school in the south that is now suddenly a household name? Even our local newspaper had the Davidson game along with a shot of Stephen Curry and Jason Richards rejoicing on the front of the Sports section. NPR chose Davidson's play as the highlight of the tournament so far (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88939622). One of the ESPN commentators said before Sunday's game that Davidson would be the big upset of the day--upsetting Georgetown that is. And they did. And, I am definitely NOT crying any tears over Duke's early elimination--as we view them as 'The Other D' in North Carolina.

Today Carrie and I rejoiced that finally people knew who the heck Davidson was. Marla sent an article on just that topic (http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=clemmons/080324&sportCat=ncb).

Yes, I'm asking for bragging rights here on this blog entry!

I'm so used to hearing the question: "Where did you go to college?"

Me: "Davidson College."

Response: "Where?" or "Did you mean Denison? Dickinson?"

Me: "Davidson College. It's in North Carolina, about 30 minutes outside of Charlotte."

Response: "Oh."

Inevitibly, this series of questions and answers is often followed by one final question: "Why did you go there?"

This isn't so gratifying when you go to a college where you work your toosh off and no one has ever heard of it!

Now people have heard of Davidson College. And the sportscasters love to play up the Honor Code and the small student body of 1700. Now, when people ask me where I went to school maybe they will simply respond, "Oh, Davidson. They have a really great basketball program, don't they?" And maybe I'll be frustrated that they don't now more about this small liberal arts school in the south. Maybe I'll wish they knew more about what makes Davidson so incredibly special, particularly its honor code, rigorous academics, self-scheduled exams, and all of the other little special touches it has such as pairing us with roommates freshman year who become lifelong friends.

I'm approaching my 10 year anniversary of graduation from Davidson and what a way to celebrate! Currently, I'm filling out a form of Davidson memories. One of the questions is: In one sentence, how has your Davidson experience impacted your life? I can answer with complete honesty, that every single day of my life I'm grateful to Davidson. I am grateful for many things--most importantly the way Davidson taught me to live my life, the friendships I created there, and the liberal arts education I received. I am so grateful that I graduated before I got sick, even if I just made it by a month! Rarely does a day go by that my email box doesn't have an email or a photo from a Davidson friend. And, they even faithfully read my blog! :) I mean, that's friendship!

I may live in a town that lives and breathes blue and white, but I will always live and breathe red and black.

Whatever happens in the game, as my Dad says, Davidson has shattered all expectations. Really, now it's just about having fun. So go out and have fun--because you made history already guys! For the first time in 39 years you made it past Round 1. And you have the longest winning streak among all other Division I teams (23 straight).

Don't forget to watch Davidson beat Wisconsin (Carrie and Britt?? You reading? :)):

Davidson vs. Wisconsin

Friday, March 28Th

7:10 pm on CBS

Detroit, MI

Go Wildcats!

Emily

P.S. Can you believe I'm not writing in purple?

Here are the articles in more detail for those interested--you know those of you Davidson folks reading! :)

From ESPN (passed on by Marla. This article had me chuckling, as it captured what it's like to live in a state no where near Davidson!):

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=clemmons/080324&sportCat=ncb

Where exactly is Davidson? In the Sweet 16, that's where
By Anna K. Clemmons

For most of my post-collegiate life, whenever someone asks me where I went to college, I answer in two parts. "Davidson College … it's outside of Charlotte in North Carolina." Why the geographical tag? Because few people outside the Tar Heel state have heard of the small, liberal arts college 30 minutes from the Queen City.

But thanks to a guard named Stephen Curry, a coach named Bob McKillop and a team of hard-working, strong-willed players, that changed this weekend. Led by point guard Jason Richards (who led the nation in assists this season) and Curry (70 points in two tournament games), 10th-seeded Davidson took down Gonzaga and then Georgetown in the early rounds of the NCAA tournament in Raleigh, N.C.

Stephen Curry and Davidson aren't flying under the radar anymore.I was there for both games -- but as a fan, not a reporter. Initially, I'd requested a press pass, thinking I'd sit objectively on press row and watch my Cats attempt something they hadn't accomplished since my father graduated from Davidson in 1969 (the Lefty Driesell days). But I quickly realized that wasn't possible. Luckily, the president of Davidson, Tom Ross, also happens to be one of our closest family friends and secured tickets for me. When Ross entered Davidson in 1968, my father was his hall counselor, and they've been friends ever since. Ross' daughter, Mary Kathryn, and I have been best friends since we started going to camp together at age 5, though given our parents' closeness, we claim it's really "since the womb." (We were also Davidson classmates and roommates.)

That's a lot of what Davidson is -- not just an excellent academic institution (ranked as the No. 9 liberal arts college this year by U.S. News and World Report) that does your laundry, but a foundation for lifelong friendships. Filling out March Madness brackets last week, I entered into one with my best girlfriends from college, 15 total, all of whom I'm still close to. A school with a student body of 1,700 is in some ways like a fraternity. As soon as you say the words "Davidson alumni," you've made a connection, whether you were there together or not.

Those thousands of alumni were united by basketball this past weekend. After Friday's victory, Ross received e-mails from the Ukraine, calls from China and messages from Africa. The words were a mix of elation and disbelief that Davidson, a one-and-done team the past two years, had made it to the second round. My college friend Taylor, living in Shanghai, convinced an "Olive-TGI-Bee's" (his tag for a knock-off of the American chains) to turn the game on in the sports bar so he could sit and cheer alone at midnight for the Cats.

Because while the rest of the nation is catching on, we've been following the Cats all season; and in many cases, for many seasons. Earlier this season, we were disappointed after close losses against North Carolina, Duke, UCLA and NC State, but we knew McKillop's day would come. The talented Long Island native, who often likens basketball to Broadway, would find a way to lead his team onto the biggest stage of the season.

Sitting with Ross and his wife, Mary Kathryn and her husband, and my mother on Friday, I looked around at the sea of red and black "It's a great day to be a Wildcat" T-shirts. Sure, we were a geographical favorite over Gonzaga, but even the UNC fans waiting for the evening session were cheering for the Cats. Former Davidson players from two to 10 years ago filled the stands alongside alums from the '40s, '50s and 2000s.

It's a great day to be a Wildcat. Indeed.After the win, Curry was surrounded by so many cameras in the locker room that one reporter said it looked like the Yankees clubhouse. Later that afternoon, "Stephen Curry" was No. 5 on Google Hot Trends, which gauges the hottest Internet searches of the day.

At a tailgate that evening, Ross told me he'd recently met Barack Obama at an event. When Ross told Obama where he was president, Obama immediately wanted to talk hoops. "That's a good team you've got there," Obama remarked. "And Steph Curry -- he's one of the best pure shooters in the country." Not bad when a presidential hopeful is taking notice. And it's not just Curry, as the sharpshooter is always quick to point out: The entire roster of McKillop-recruited players -- many from other countries -- has played instrumental roles in getting the Cats to this point.

The arena was dominated by baby blue on Sunday afternoon, though the Wildcats contingent was still strong. As the Cinderella sensation slipped away into a 15-point deficit, the crowd quieted. But when Curry and the Cats came roaring back in the second half, so did the fans. UNC folks were on their feet alongside Davidson as the Cats pulled ahead. Like Friday, they orchestrated a comeback that made the words from this season's anthem, "Sweet Caroline" -- "Good times never seemed so good" -- ring true.

At the game-ending buzzer, we screamed, cheered, laughed and hugged strangers. I felt like an extra in the bar scene in "Major League" after the Indians won the pennant. Davidson's men's basketball team made the Sweet 16. We kept repeating it, as though we still couldn't believe it was true. In the RBC Center's concourse, students gathered in a large circle for more than 20 minutes after the game, chanting and singing "Sweet Caroline." When the Davidson players emerged from the tunnel to take their seats during the UNC-Arkansas game, the entire crowd paused to give them a standing ovation. The players waved and nodded, some heading into the seats to hug their families. UNC's band played one more round of "Sweet Caroline," an ode to the Davidson crowd who sang along yet again.

After the game, the talking heads couldn't stop raving about the Cats. Dick Vitale called Curry his tourney MVP and Richards the most underrated point guard in America. On "SportsCenter," Digger Phelps called the Cats the most impressive team of the Sweet 16 and Steve Lavin named Curry the tourney's most impressive player. Online articles and newspapers across the country talked of the David-sons taking down the G-town Goliaths and the Cinderella team that did it, and the first thing I heard when I flipped on the car radio Monday was McKillop being interviewed on a national radio show.

All this … for Davidson? Twenty-four hours later, it's still sinking in. As a Chapel Hill, N.C., native, I'm spoiled when it comes to college basketball. I've seen the Tar Heels win three national championships and who knows how many Sweet 16 berths. But I have to admit this journey is the sweetest. My small-school team from small-town North Carolina moves on. And with it, so does an alumni wave of pride and excitement stirred to new heights.

Before Sunday's tip-off, we stood outside the RBC Center in our Davidson T-shirts. An older gentleman came up and asked us, "Now Davidson -- where is that exactly?" We smiled, patiently answering the question one more time.

Because a few hours later, there aren't many college basketball fans who don't know. We couldn't be happier. It's a great day to be a Wildcat.

Anna K. Clemmons is a reporter for ESPN The Magazine.

And from NPR (Another article to make you smile. Click on the link to hear listen to the story.):

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88939622

NCAA Men's Tourney: Sweet Comeback for Davidson

Morning Edition, March 24, 2008 · The NCAA men's basketball tournament is down to the "Sweet 16" — from 65 teams at the start. The first weekend saw powers like Duke, Georgetown, Connecticut and Kentucky fail to advance — while schools like Davidson and Western Kentucky are still playing. Other non-powers like San Diego and Siena pulled stunning first-round upsets.

Commentator John Feinstein says the best story among the 16 teams still playing is Davidson, which was a 10th seed — meaning it wasn't supposed to win one game, let alone two. The southern North Carolina school last won an NCAA tournament game in 1969.

On Sunday, the team came back from 17 points down in the second half against Georgetown, the second seed in its region. Stephen Curry, whose dad played in the NBA, led Davidson and "did not miss a shot down the stretch under pressure," Feinstein says. "It's one of the more remarkable comebacks I've seen in this tournament."

Happy Easter! Happy Spring!

To my family and friends who celebrate:

Happy Easter!

And to everyone, Happy Spring!

(Our first full day of Spring was followed by a blanket of snow on the ground this morning!)

Photos: Abbie's got the house all decorated for Easter at D and A's!

Hope-filled HillRaiser for Hillary!

One month from today Pennsylvanians will vote, making their choice for the democratic candidate for president in November 2008.




I have struggled to find ways, given my limited energy, to 'do my share' in helping to get Hillary Clinton elected.




I've decided to ask others who support Hillary to join me in helping to support her campaign in whatever ways you can. You can keep up to date on the campaign at http://www.hillaryclinton.com/.








I have decided to be a grassroots fundraiser through my blog and email.




I have been assigned a personal fundraising link. At the Team Hillary Action Center I can track all contributions made through this link. The link will be good indefinitely. Just click on this link to make your contribution! Voila! You've helped bring Hillary one step closer to the White House.






MY HILLRAISERS LINK:




www.hillaryclinton.com/contribute/GNVS





Please understand that I am only using my blog and email as a way to reach fellow Hillary supporters, not to pressure anyone into donating or to push my views on you.




I hope those of you who support Hillary will consider making a donation--even if you feel you can only give $10, it counts! As I heard on NPR last night, small repeat donors are making the difference in this campaign. You don't need to give big for it to matter.




We're part of Team Hillary and it will be fun for us to track our own impact on this campaign by seeing how much we donate as a team!




Please note: that as a team we will be able to track the amount of donations made, but I will not see your name so your donation and the amount you donated will remain anonymous.




Never in my life have I felt strongly about donating to a campaign. This year is different. Why? Because I feel that our country and the world need Hillary Clinton as president. On a personal level, I need Hillary Clinton as president

Politics have always mattered to me, have always been personal to me. I grew up watching the 6:30 news with Tom Brokaw and listening to my parents talk endlessly about current events, politics, and of course, the world through the lens of Sociology. Their passion for social issues, social change and social justice became a part of me also. I have always been passionate about who governs and how they govern. I have always been passionate about caring for our citizens and the citizens of the world.

Now as a person with a disability, I see even more clearly and personally the injustices in our society. I see my friends on DINET lose their homes, be unable to get the medical care they need, or relentlessly be turned down for SSI or SSDI. This year politics feel more personal than ever. I feel as if we have lost eight years of hope. I feel this most deeply in the areas of medical research and in terms of caring for our sick, but I also feel it with the Iraq war, our relationships around the world, our environment, our educational system, and so much more.

How we treat our sick and disabled citizens, health care, and medical research is unacceptable and unbearable to me. We need a president who will be a voice for citizens like me. No one should live or die because of their health care (or lack thereof). Period. No one should go broke trying to pay medical bills. Period. No one should have access to the best health care only because they can afford it. Period.

I believe:

That Hillary is the most qualified candidate to bring real change and 'real solutions'. Every time I hear her speak I am so impressed by her incredible depth, breadth, knowledge, thoughtfulness, and balance on every topic discussed. She makes me say: "Wow. I want her in the White House!"

That Hillary's impressive and extensive foreign policy experience and knowledge are the keys to repairing our relationships around the world. Do you hear my friend, Corina, cheering for her in the Netherlands? :)

That her detailed, yet realistic, approaches to the Iraq war, foreign policy, health-care, the faltering economy, education, the environment and other domestic issues will bring America back to being a respected and thriving nation.




That she will remember all of the most vulnerable and marginalized members of our society: women and children, the poor, the disabled, the elderly. She will, hands down, have the best policies for women, family and children our nation has ever seen.




That we know what we're getting with Hillary Clinton--flaws and all. I have always admired her grace and triumph over adversity over the many years she has been in public life.




That Hillary works across party lines and will unite our country. Even John McCain, for whom I have a lot of respect, has spoken of his respect for Hillary Clinton as a politician who works across party lines, works well with others, keeps her word, and works hard.




That Hillary is, in a sense, 'living change' because she has spent her whole life fighting to succeed as a woman. For those of you who feel that it's unfair to have a Bush-Clinton-Bush-Clinton 'dynasty' in America, I ask you to think of what most women in America do. They follow their husbands. Don't punish Hillary for allowing her husband to be president first. Evaluate her as her own person, as her own candidate.




That, as my Dad says: Opportunity effects Aspiration. If women and little girls see that something can be done, they are more willing to try to achieve it themselves. What will we tell our little girls? What will we tell our mothers who fought for women's rights?




That Hillary is one heck of a fighter and she will fight for all of us. As she said after the March 4Th primaries:

Some people were ready to count us out. But you and I proved them wrong, just as we have every time they tried to declare this race over prematurely. And we're going to keep showing them exactly what we can do.

We're going to do it for everyone across America who's been counted out -- but refused to be knocked out. For everyone who's stumbled -- but stood right back up. And for everyone who works hard -- but never gives up.




I identify strongly with this statement on a personal level. It is so hard to get up every day and fight for healing, fight to get better. Hillary is not going to give up on America or on you.




Please help me to help Hillary win BIG in Pennsylvania and carry the momentum all the way to the White House.




This link will be good indefinitely.





I cannot wait to see Hillary Clinton sworn in as President of the United States of America!




Thank you for your support!




Blessings,



Emily



P.S. Previous blog entries on Hillary are as follows. The first link will share with you even more of the reasons I am passionate about Hillary.






If not now when?:
http://adancinglight.blogspot.com/2008/03/weekend-lyrics-awakening-what-happens.html

Me in my Hillary Gear: http://adancinglight.blogspot.com/2008/03/hillary-gear.html


Mom in her Hillary Gear and campaigning for Hillary in PA (Hillary Gear is available at http://www.hillaryclinton.com/) There's lots of fun stuff!:


http://adancinglight.blogspot.com/2008/03/how-mom-spent-her-first-night-out.html

How Mom Spent Her First 'Night Out'...

When I woke up yesterday, Mom was all dressed in her new Hillary gear. I love this shirt!

As a woman who is part of Hillary's generation, Mom is very emotionally invested in this campaign and having Hillary as president.

Mom watched her own career and opportunities be cut short in ways simply because she was a woman, not because she was not capable. So, she very much wants to see Hillary break that glass ceiling for all of us women. She even got quoted in our local paper talking about this! :)

We also all believe that Hillary is the most qualified candidate.

So, here she is in her very own Hillary gear ready to go to the grand opening of the Hillary Headquarters in our town.

It was packed full of people and enthusiasm!

Blessings (and have a great week Mom!)

Emily

Settling In At D and A's

It's Wednesday evening and I am just settling in for a week long stay with Dad and Abbie (D and A for short.)

Asher and I arrived this afternoon (along with everything but the kitchen sink, it seems). Abbie went above and beyond to buy all of my special foods, have everything set up for me, and all the little details in place. I really can't give Dad credit for all of this--he just gets lots of points in the enthusiasm department! (Sorry Dad). Tonight his big job was to slice a loaf of gluten-free bread. As he did so, I felt pained as I watched him mangle the loaf of bread. I'm still not quite sure how these 'slices' will be made into sandwiches. Abbie said, "Emily! Don't watch! Listen to me I am telling you a story! Don't watch! That is how I have survived staying married to him all of this time!" Okay, I have to admit I about keeled over laughing. Dad thinks he did a very good job slicing the bread. Maybe an 'A' for effort, but definitely an 'A' for humor. I expect there to be no shortage of entertainment and laughs while I am here.

I arrived this afternoon after much packing, organizing and help from Mom, shopping and cleaning by Abbie, etc. Asher even had his own little bag packed (as seeing the suitcase being packed up for me had him very anxious!). Mom unloaded and organized everything here and I'm set up in the basement which is like having my own little apartment. Today, so far, I've enjoyed a nap, dinner with Dad and Abbie, and an episode of Gilmore Girls Season 2 on the new TV, DVD and furniture D and A have down here. And the bedroom (formerly Monica's room) is purple just like mine. It's been so many years since I've been to their house that there are so many new things to see!

The biggest obstacle here is the flight of stairs, since I can't do stairs at all. Well, going down the stairs is not a problem but going UP is a big problem. So, of course Farmer Dad has a plan for this. He used his Buick Rendezvous (yes, every car he owns must be a Buick) to drive around to the basement (which is on a slope so is very bright and open) and picked me up for dinner. He even had the seat warmer on! Such service! I think we should drive the John Deere tractor instead. I hope that with all of this wet weather we are not going to ruin the grass doing this--or he's going to have grass to replant this spring.

Otherwise, I think I've brought just about everything I could need and if I haven't Abbie has bought it! Asher's here to keep me company. I can't believe how much work it was to pack for a stay at a location only 2o minutes away.

I have not stayed with Dad and Abbie since 2004. The last time I was at their house was Christmas of 2004 before my last gallbladder attack and subsequent surgery.

So what prompted this week-long stay? Well, we're all trying to find ways to cope with what we are going through. We're all trying to find ways to deal with the stress levels. Mom has not had a break at all for a very long time. I used to stay with Dad and Abbie on a regular basis to give Mom the house to herself, some alone time, and a break from all of the cooking and chores. The intensity of all of this work has only increased since 2005, and Mom needs a break. She's understandably worn out and exhausted and we all hope that this will be good for all of us. I give my Dad, Abbie and Mom a lot of credit for working on this all together as a team, uniting in what could be seen as a most awkward family situation, and hanging on through this past 10 years of crap. Dad and Abbie have been instrumental in really helping to figure out a way to make it so that I could come here and so that Mom could get a break.

Mom was so giddy with excitement about the week ahead! I had to laugh because I knew how excited she was but she didn't want to show it and make me feel badly. But, hey...who doesn't want a break from mothering, from cooking dinner every night, from taking care of all of my needs (and Asher's too)? I hope so much she'll have a good week and enjoy having the house to herself. (Mom you had better watch a movie on that nice TV upstairs!)

What I am most looking forward to doing here at Dad and Abbie's is trying to take some down time and do just five things:

1. Spend lots of quality time with Dad and Abbie. I don't see either of them as much as I would like and it's nice that we will have all of our meals together. I will also see my step-sisters and their husbands on Easter Sunday for the first time since Christmas day 2004.

2. Write, write, and write some more on my blog. I have had so much going on and happening that it's time for lots of updating. I can't believe I haven't blogged since March 4Th! I really struggle when I don't have time or energy to write and hope that this week will allow for at least some writing. Dad does get major credit for helping me get set up in the recliner in a way that I can use my computer and be reclined. (DINET friends who need to recline--I just purchased this really cool contraption called a Laptop Laid Back and it is fantastic, very portable, and according to Dad, very easy to assemble. Actually, anyone who likes to recline and type might really like this tool.)

3. Watch Davidson kick butt in the NCAA tournament on Friday afternoon! Goooo Wildcats. Dad and I are going to watch the game and dine on PB and J sandwiches (mine on the professionally sliced bread). I can't wait!

4. Rest and relax and take some 'me' time. Books on tape; Gilmore Girls on DVD (I have owned Season 2 for many years now and still have never watched it! Sarah and Jeannine have borrowed it and seen it already...how sad is that? At least I've gotten my money's worth out of this purchase); Listen to music; Cuddle with Asher.

5. Hope and try to find a little peace, balance and quiet after all of the storms lately.

Blessings,

Emily

P.S.

GO

WILDCATS!!!

(Friday afternoon 12:25 ET on CBS)

Hillary Gear!

As you can see, I'm dressed appropriately for the March 4th primaries!

All dressed in my Hillary Gear!

I thought Marla especially would appreciate these pictures! :)

We've been having fun going back and forth with each other about politics and the election. I like to tease her because she's a Democrat turned Republican on me. I'm glad we can have this back and forth with a mutual understanding that friendship matters more than our political views. But we do like to have at it a bit!

Go Hillary!

Emily

Lyme Log: Play. Pause. Stop. Rewind. Play. Pause...Leaves Us at a Transition Point

I've been avoiding writing a Lyme update. Somehow it seems easier, no matter how sick I am, to distract myself in a world writing about other things.



Still, I'm long overdue to update you all on what is really going on in my life medically. I think it's easier for me to articulate how I feel about Hillary Clinton for president than it is for me to articulate all of the health stuff! So, please bear with me on this blog entry! I'm hoping that by putting the health stuff out there I will feel less immobilized in other ways. For example, I find that I cannot even start an email to someone because it's so hard to answer how I am or to say what is going on health-wise. I'm not sure that makes a whole lot of sense--but the only place I'm not immobilized in my life right now by the stuff going on is through my blogging/writing.



After two years of treatment and 338 little minocylcine pills later, we find ourselves at a crossroads in my medical treatment. As I write this blog, I am anxiously awaiting emails and phone calls from various members of my medical team. I've 'called in the troops', as I say--Dr. ANS, Dr. Lyme and my new PCP--to work together to help create a new, and possibly more hopeful or successful treatment path.



My parents and 'Mommy' Bev have been walking me through the emotions and the next steps to take. Bev, a Lymie herself, is able to calm me down and to help me see outside of my box when I am in crisis and look at the options available to me. Without her help, I would not have the clarity I had in being able to really ask the doctors for what I wanted and needed.



The past six months have been especially challenging and difficult. I said in my entry acknowledging my depression that I was acutely aware of the trigger for the depression. Well, the trigger was, in many ways, my December phone consult with my Lyme doctor. However, my mood had steadily been going downhill in October and November as I worked to increase treatment and felt lousy all of the time.

The other day our neighbor, Anne, stopped over.



She said to my mom: "Does Emily feel as bad as she looks?"



Yup, that about sums it up. At least the two are congruent. Usually it's "Oh, but you look so good!" It was almost a relief, and somewhat validating, to know I looked the way I felt. Anne really can crack me up! This is pretty much how the past six months have been, without any relief.



During the summer, we started to feel that we were seeing some progress, however glacial in nature. In order to really and truly kill off the Lyme I need to continue increasing my doses of antibiotics, make myself sicker, and hope that I see 'windows' in between of feeling better.



I have not had a 'window' of feeling any better since October. I'm tired and frustrated. I feel like I am pushing so hard, working so hard, and making myself so sick without seeing any progress.



Catching up:



Let me explain a bit why I chose the phrase Play. Pause. Stop. Rewind. Play. Pause.



Play:



During the months of October and November I chose to increase my dose of minocycline. At this point I continue to take no more than about 5 of those little 50 mg pills a week, which is a teeny tiny dose. I increase in increments such as taking doses as follows: 2 days of mino, one day off, 2 days of mino, one day off, 2 days of mino, etc. Then, an increase would be to start taking the following: 2 days on/one day off/3 days on/one day off/2 days on/one day off/repeat. Cousin Jan: I bet you can imagine what a joy this is to keep track of in those pill packs!



Still, just adding that one pill in over the course of several days makes me very, very sick.



I had the attitude that if I made myself really sick through the months of October and November, I would be done herxing by the time all of my visitors arrived for the holidays. Instead, six weeks into the second increase, I found myself even sicker--pajama day after pajama day (and not the good kind of PJ day that I love!), weak, ashen in color, no appetite, and all of the other miserable ANS symptoms, fatigue and pain I experience.



In mid-December I spoke with Dr. Lyme. He suggested that I return to the dose I was on when I saw him in September and was doing 'well'. He said that I had been overzealous in my efforts to increase the minocycline. Dr. Lyme hoped that I would return to the baseline level I was at when I saw him in September while also continuing to improve slowly on the lower dose.



After this phone consult, I felt so incredibly sad and deflated. I began to feel a sense of wondering how I could EVER get better if I can't increase the medication successfully. At the rate I have been progressing over the past two years (and sometimes it's hard to see that there has been any progress) it's difficult to see how we can get me better.



My dad was here that evening for dinner and as he came to tuck me into bed, I began to cry out in pain. I sobbed, "I just want this to be over for all of us. I was just trying to get better faster. And it's not working. I just want to get better." Of course, my dad lost it too. One of the most painful parts of this illness is watching what it does to my parents. I have never seen my dad cry as much as I have since I have been sick. Often, my parents both suffer quietly, rarely letting on how much pain they are really feeling. Still, I know it's there and how deep it is. And this is overwhelming.



Stop:



By mid-December I was so sick from the mino and the increase that I ended up taking a week off of the medication. This is the first time since starting the mino that I have had to stop (unlike the first go around with the doxycycline that landed me as sick as I was post-GB surgery). Then I did a week at every other day just to ease my body back into the medication.



Rewind. Play:



I resumed the dosing schedule I had been on in September--which felt like a HUGE step backwards. Over the next two months I did not return to any sort of baseline or level of functioning I had experienced over the summer at this dose. I neither regained my previous level of 'well-being' or saw any progress forward as we had hoped.



Mix this in with the following factors: feeling too sick to enjoy my holiday visitors; cold, dreary winter weather; family stress (which is too personal to blog about); the beginning of a new year which will mark my 10 year anniversary of getting sick. The result: A recipe for increased depression and anxiety.



So, my depression really began when I pushed so hard and saw no improvement, when I began to feel that no matter how hard I was trying I wasn't getting anywhere and when I began to wonder if we were even on the right track. The mind can really go into spin cycle! Then my mood has been fueled by various other factors.



Forward:



In February, after no improvement or return to baseline, I made the decision on my own to try an increase in the mino again. What did I have to lose? I already felt like crappola! I ended up with another awful herx. I am also beginning to feel that the mino is too hard on my stomach because I end up so nauseous, sick to my stomach and in excruciating pain that I cannot eat. When jello sounds good to me, I know I don't feel well! Ugh. The mino feels like it is ripping up my insides!

On February 21st I had another phone consult with Dr. Lyme. This time he felt that perhaps I had not been making myself sick enough to make progress in treatment. This was, of course, the opposite of what he had said in December.

The conversation was frustrating because we spoke for 20 minutes, at which point I thought that we had agreed to try a new antibiotic, and then he took a call from another patient for a phone consult. After that, he called me back, but I felt we had lost our train of thought and where we were at in the earlier conversation.

I came out of the conversation frustrated and confused. In the end, Dr. Lyme wanted me to stay the course on the minocycline because he believes it is working (which, in reality, in some sense it is because it is still making me this sick). I was pushing back at him to change paths because I feel that I want to see if another medication will help me to progress more quickly, even if it does make me sicker.

I began to question everything: Do I really have Lyme? Can I ever get better? Should I be getting a second opinion? Where do we go from here? What antibiotic do I want to try? These are the times my Mommy Bev walks me through each step with patience and wisdom. My parents and I are so enmeshed in the situation (and clueless about Lyme on so many levels) that, for me, having Mommy Bev is a lifeline.

What I think that I want is to try a different antibiotic, called bicillin, in the form of shots. It's a bit more aggressive, but not as aggressive as IV antibiotics. I am feeling that if I don't try something different, I will always wonder, "What if I had tried such and such? Would I have gotten better faster?" I am so committed to getting better and fighting this...but sometimes it feels like fighting one heck of a riptide. Should I just let go and see where it takes me? See where I end up on the shore? Am I pushing too hard against the Lyme or not hard enough? As you can see, the last few months have left me feeling shaky and scared on the medical front. Finding the balance between letting go and pushing back is a difficult one--and patience, as always, is the most important thing to try to maintain.


Rewind:



I am now back on the baseline summer/September dose while I wait (patiently, of course. Ha!) for the doctors to coordinate things.



Pause. Wait for a transition. Choose the next road.



So, where does this leave me? Waiting.



I have backed off of the mino in hopes that I will at lest be a wee bit less sick than I have been.



I have emailed extensively with Dr. ANS and we are also planning to have a phone consult. I have also written a letter to Dr. Lyme and Dr. PCP. Dr. ANS is planning on consulting with Dr. Lyme. Hopefully, all of these actions and acts of coordination of care will result in a decision about where we go from here. There are many options to weigh. No answer is easy. And no choice guarantees anything. We have a lot to decide and discuss.

I have a deep trust in Dr. ANS that I do not have in any other doctor. I feel better simply having him 'working on things' from his end and not trying to figure it all out on my own. At this point, I do not have the knowledge to make the best decision for my care, so I am letting go and waiting to see where he thinks we should go from here. I have a sense of relief in knowing that I'm not in this alone. I wish I could contribute a million dollars to this doctor's research funds! He's that amazing.



I will not go into the details here, as I have written enough. But when I do have a sense of where we go from here, I will be better about trying to keep you up to date!



My first visitors of 2008 arrive this upcoming weekend. Carrie and Britt will be here for a three night visit. I need the emotional and spiritual lift of this visit more than anything right now. So, I am praying that I will not be too sick to enjoy at least a good part of it. Carrie is six months prego and this will be our last all girls weekend before the baby arrives. I've only met Britt once before for about 10 whole minutes, so I want to be able to get to know her and enjoy her fantastic cooking. She is planning to be head chef and Carrie will be sous-chef! How lucky am I??? We are going to be bums and hang out in our PJs I hope! :) I really LOVE 'good pajama days'--the kind you CHOOSE to stay in your PJs--not the kind when you are forced to out of feeling to crappy.



I thank all of you for your continued support and understanding while I try to find my way again. Trying to find my way emotionally, spiritually, and medically is taking all of the energy I can muster. I apologize for all of the unanswered emails in my inbox. Each message is treasured, even if it is not answered in writing. Right now, I am using my blog as my primary method of reaching out and connnecting with others. You're support of my latest blogs has been quite remarkable!



Blessings,



Emily

Weekend Lyrics: The Awakening: What Happens Tomorrow

The Awakening: What Happens Tomorrow


Written and Performed by Melissa Etheridge





I believe if I look hard enough I will see


That there can be enough


I believe I can think clear enough


To conceive


A place where there's enough...





If not now, tomorrow


What Happens tomorrow...





I believe a woman can work hard and succeed


And we could be content


To believe that she could be in charge


Of the free


And be the president...





If not now, when


If not today then


What happens tomorrow


What happens tomorrow





If you become the change


You want to see


You change


What happens tomorrow


What happens tomorrow...





I believe that we are waking up from the spell


That those that profit from the fear


Cast so well


And good people of the earth now can tell


There is no us and them...





If not now, when


If not today then


What happens tomorrow


What happens tomorrow...





All is love


All is choice


Everyone and every voice


All of life that you see


All are possibilities


As above so below


To wed the sense into the soul


This is truth


I believe


I believe


I believe...





Truth is of the people


By the people


For the people





Why I chose these Lyrics: Most of you know I'm a democrat. You know I'm liberal fiscally and socially. However, my readers have a diverse range of political beliefs, and I debated a long time whether or not to post how I really feel about this election. I've been watching my friend, Tess, write openly on her blog about her passion for Barack Obama. I've admired her for doing so. I hope you'll hear me out. However, the glory of the computer is something called the 'delete' button and you are welcome to press that at any time.



The other night I popped The Awakening into my CD player. When this song came on, I knew it was this weekend's lyrics. I knew that I would state the following (Marla, hon, please take a slow deep breath, exhale, and then eat a few M & M's):



I am passionate about Hillary Clinton for president.



Why? That is worthy of an entire blog entry, which I still intend to write. But for now, as we approach the March 4Th primaries I want to state what I believe.



I love politics. Dad is a political junkie. Mom loves politics. And during these past few months, one of my favorite passions (and distractions from being sick) is politics. I feel so incredibly invested in this election on a deep personal level I have never experienced before. I have never felt so strongly that a particular candidate has the opportunity to change my life and this country dramatically for the better.

This song also brings up some food for thought specifically about having a woman for president:

Why, in our 200 year history, have we never had a woman lead our country? Almost all other industrialized nations in the world have already had women leaders. Why not us? And, if not now, when?

There is no other woman on the political horizon who is expected to run for president any time in the foreseeable future. Hillary Clinton is our opportunity to see a woman president in our lifetime, and especially the lifetime of our mothers.

Have we as younger women (who are the women most likely to vote for Obama over Clinton) forgotten what our mother's generation did for us? Have we forgotten that we have all of the opportunities we have today because THEY fought for US? Hillary is someone who has lived this change her whole life. I'm not sure how she became to many, especially in comparison to Obama, the antithesis of change, hope and inspiration? She is here to possibly break the greatest glass ceiling a woman can break. How is this not change, hope, and inspiration? I have heard my mom's stories of pursuing a PhD and trying to succeed in a 'man's world' and they are horrific. I think many of us would have given up a long time ago facing the obstacles she did.

Have we forgotten that 50% of our population is women? How a woman thinks, leads, approaches and solves problems is profoundly and fundamentally different than a man and in that case, any president in our history.

She will be the first president, I believe, to remember the value of families, women, and children. Our care for women, children and families in the form of family leave, maternity leave, childcare, work-family issues, healthcare and education have been sorely neglected. As a working woman, a wife, and a mother, Clinton will bring a much needed perspective to our presidency.

If I'm ever blessed enough to be a mother, and if that child is a little girl, I want her to know that she can be anything, including president of the United States of America.

I am not voting for Hillary Clinton simply because she is a woman. I am voting for her because I believe that she is the most competent and qualified candidate. I believe in universal health care. I believe in what she believes in. And I believe that she is the person who can truly, truly 'hit the ground running on Day One.' Why? Because she's been fighting and training for this her whole life and she's proven to me that she can 'get the job done'.

While I chose this particular song in light of the political climate we are in right now, no song on this album disappoints. I received Melissa Etheridge's album, The Awakening, as a holiday gift. It has been consistently praised by critics, and rightly so, as on of the best albums of 2007. I have always liked Melissa Etheridge, but her music tended to be a little more rock than I prefer. This album is much more mellow and lyric focused, with more emphasis on acoustic guitar rather than electric guitar.




The album is the result of Etheridge's own personal soul-searching after her bout with breast cancer. She has created a concept album, meant to be listened to from start to finish without interruption. She has, I believe, succeeded in powerfully speaking from her heart and boldly speaking about her spirituality, political views, and sexuality. Etheridge wrote all of her own lyrics--and I am always easily seduced by singer-songwriters who write from their souls.



She writes of the album:

This album is my story, my journey, and my hope is that it will ring universally.


There are many political and spiritual statements made in this project. I in no way wish to judge, but to shine a light on our collective feelings about the state of our politics, our religion , and our sexuality. I came to my own understanding of God, what God is, and where God is. Consequently, I feel that if we have any kind of belief in our reality and earth, we have to know that the time is now to become the change.



We are the ones keeping this paradigm of fear in place, and it is up to us to shift it if we wish. That shift and change will materialize through our thoughts and intentions.

So, I have taken my cue from Melissa Etheridge to say: This is what I believe. I also think her words are important because she states that she is NOT standing in judgement of others. As an American, I am stating what I believe, and you can state what you believe. And folks like Marla and I? We'll have fun battling it out politically in our back and forth emails. But in the end we love each other, not for our political selves, but for our inner beings. (Can you tell Marla and I like to go at it and tease each other a lot? I'm picking on her in this blog because she can dish it out and she can take it too! :))

The comment section is open for your views! :) Believe me, I know that 80% of my readers disagree with me on this issue! :)

Blessings,

Emily