Where Does God Begin?

“Look, if you say that science will eventually prove there is no God, on that I must differ. No matter how small they take it back, to a tadpole, to an atom, there is always something they can’t explain, something that created it all at the end of the search.

“And no matter how far they try to go the other way – to extend life, play around with the genes, clone this, clone that, live to one hundred and fifty – at some point, life is over. And then what happens? When the life comes to an end?”

I shrugged.

“You see?”

He leaned back. He smiled.

“When you come to the end, that’s where God begins.”
― Mitch Albom, Have a Little Faith: a True Story

A Son's Love Drives His Passion to Innovate

 

When Ivo Vieira, CEO of lusospace, contacted me last month one thing was clear: He loves his Father. Ivo's dad was diagnosed with ALS in 2013 and has lost his voice. Traditional eye gaze technology is frustrating for him at best. But Ivo perceived an opportunity where others saw frustration and despair.

Ivo explained the technology his team had been working on. Eyeglasses which would project a virtual, eye gaze capable keyboard in the wearer's field of vision and would "speak" what is typed with the eyes thru built in speakers. Pretty cool.

The Hope-JG Foundation did some research and we decided to include  Mr. Vieira's new company, lusovu, and the glasses called Eyespeak, as our third Innovator.

Because ALS is an orphaned disease, it's almost always family, friends and the afflicted who are passionate for change. We love passion - and we love this concept.

To find out more, go to our Innovators page by clicking here. http://www.hope-jg.org/#!innovators/c23ff

Check out their Kickstarter campaign and think of the possibilities:)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/886924859/eyespeak-beyond-communication

Welcome Our Newest Innovator

John Costello is my Speech and Language Pathologist. He lectures around the world and is arguably the "Father of Message Banking", which he's been doing for 20 years. 

We are honored to have Mr. Costello as our second Innovator. His vision is to create a center which will support the growing need for his message banking service. 

As a side note: If i had known about message banking before my voice was slurred, i would have a bank of messages like: "I love you." for my wife, "Good job buddy." for my sons and even "Give me a break!" for times when i'm exasperrated. Not a robotic voice - my own voice saying things with my own unique tone and inflection. Part of what made me, me. If you know or are someone who has been diagnosed with ALS, please get started message banking as soon as possible.

Please watch the video and read the recent Boston Globe article about John, his work and his passion to help people preserve part of what makes them unique.

http://www.hope-jg.org/#!innovators/c23ff

Calling Passionate People

We got home yesterday from clinic, always a tiring day for both of us, a little after 6 and crashed for the night. Seeking to "veg out", we flipped on Netflix and settled on a documentary called "Spinning Plates". It's about three diverse restaurants in three very different locales and the people who run them. 

The film begins by introducing the three restaurants and the film's narration is entirely the owners voices. The common thread is a subject that's been dear to my heart since early youth: Passion. I guess that comes from my Dad who was passionate about life, learning, family, teaching, coaching and friends.

The passion displayed by the restaurant owners comes from different places. In Iowa, it's love of community and a sense of family history. In Arizona, it's love of family and just trying to provide a better life. And in Chicago, passion is demonstrated by a young restauranteur/chef named Grant Achatz, who my immediate reaction to were words like "pretentious" and "arrogant (and I was wrong). Grant and his business partner run a restaurant called Alinea, a 3 star Michelin winner. Grant and his staff creat Nouvelle Cuisine art by combining science with gastronomy and their dishes are meticulously thought through and constructed. 

A little more than half way through the film, it turns from a fairly typical "three neat places to eat" to a more human drama. Grant tells of being diagnosed with Stage 4 tongue cancer and is told by four different doctors that the only way he has a chance of surviving is to remove his tongue and part of his jawbone. Imagine, you make your living with your taste buds and you're told you'll lose the very thing that enables your passion to come to life. I won't give away the rest of the movie for those who want to watch (two thumbs up here). 

Our foundation is determined to see an ALS/MS Residence built in Maine. It's needed. There's no reason people without family or with family incapable of caring for a patient with neurodegenerative disease should have so few alternatives for living out the time they have in anything but a nurturing environment. We are passionate about getting this done. We need people to join us who are equally passionate. 

It doesn't matter what your talents or gifts may be. If you're passionate about using them to help others, we want to talk to you to explain more about our vision. You don't need to know a lot about healthcare, ALS, MS, or any other neurological disease - we'll share what we know. All we need are people with an unquenchable passion to help others. 

Are you passionate? After all, it's no coincidence the word 'passion' is in 'compassion'. 

Contact us by email at info@hope-jg.org.

“To hope under the most extreme circumstances is an act of defiance..."

“To hope under the most extreme circumstances is an act of defiance that permits a person to live his life on his own terms. It is part of the human spirit to endure and give a miracle a chance to happen.” 
― Jerome Groopman

I sit here today, trying to recoup from a few intense, emotional days surrounding the graduation of our youngest son and looking ahead to a week full of meetings and doctors visits, my mind wandered. It wandered to the idea of Hope. Heaven knows, with the launch of the foundation barely a month past, it seems like it's all we've talked about - this Hope thing.

Linda and I have heard whispers and Facebook posts alluding to "too much hope" and similar sentiments. We've even heard it said that we're cheapening the word 'Hope' to little more than a Hallmark greeting by using it so much and so prominently.

When I ask myself: "Is there such a thing as too much hope?", no matter how hard I try to rationalize it, I still come up with same answer. Nope. Now, I'm not talking about false Hope or even living in a state of denial. I'm talking about honest, heartfelt hope that comes from an unshakeable faith that good things will happen no matter what my circumstance today. 

Webster's defines hope as: "to expect with confidence:trust". Trust. Hmmm...so if I 'hope', I 'trust'.  The quote that begins this post says Hope is an act of defiance. I believe that's true. To live in a state of constant hopefulness isn't any easier than trusting people all the time. Hope, like defiance, takes willpower and effort. It ain't easy.

The Bible (my favorite book) is full of references to hope, and many of those same verses speak of trusting God. But Christians don't have an exclusive on Hope or trust. Gandhi said: "I believe in trusting. Trust begets trust. Suspicion is foetid and only stinks. He who trusts has never yet lost in the world.” It's not a stretch to say Gandhi believed the he who hopes has never yet lost in the world, too.

Am I discounting those who forsake Hope for despair or those among us who have hoped but are just tired of the struggle? Absolutely not. There comes a time for every warrior to lay their shield down, and we honor that. What I'm simply trying to do here is the same thing The Hope-JG Foundation is intended to do. To encourage those who are tired and weary, no matter what your struggle, to take one more step when you think you've taken your last. 

Get defiant - your personal miracle may be tomorrow.


*BTW: Learned a new word today. The Gandhi quote uses the word 'foetid' which means "having a heavy, offensive smell"...huh.

Our Recent Radio Appearance with Shannon Moss

YOU guys get to hear my amazing wife at her best:)

http://www.hope-jg.org/#!audio/c173o

Listen to Shannon Moss week days from 9 - 11 a AM Eastern time. Streaming live at: http://www.wlobradio.com/. This audio is used with permission.

A Lesson From a Man With A New Outlook

I love this quote from Lee Atwater, who was arguably one of the most ruthless political minds in memory. Atwater died of brain cancer some time ago but facing his mortality gave him a shift of perspective few can understand, unless they've been there - trust me.

"My illness helped me to see that what was missing in society is what was missing in me: a little heart, a lot of brotherhood. The '80s were about acquiring — acquiring wealth, power, prestige. I know. I acquired more wealth, power, and prestige than most. But you can acquire all you want and still feel empty. What power wouldn't I trade for a little more time with my family? What price wouldn't I pay for an evening with friends? It took a deadly illness to put me eye to eye with that truth, but it is a truth that the country, caught up in its ruthless ambitions and moral decay, can learn on my dime. I don't know who will lead us through the '90s, but they must be made to speak to this spiritual vacuum at the heart of American society, this tumor of the soul."