Empathy, Sympathy and Thanksgiving (Audio)

ITP #40: What do you say to a friend when they've shared with you something troubling they're going through? Or that they have been diagnosed with an illness? We aways try to make it better but maybe all we need to do is be there with them. In this weeks episode, Anush takes a look at Empathy, prepping for Thanksgiving, and then of course, there's the gratitude list.
Links: Power of Empathy video
Gramma's Yalanchi Recipe
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for epostle.net
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Empathy and Thanksgiving

This past Monday was a wonderful day.  How can it not be...it's my day off.  And so on Monday morning, I headed over to my daughter Ani's house.  She and her husband are hosting Thanksgiving again this year, for the third year in a row since they got married.   This year we have something new to be thankful for!  Little Arek, my grandson,  is 12 weeks old this week. Can you believe that?  And it's his first Thanksgiving...and our first Thanksgiving as grandparents.  Each time I see him there is something new he's doing.  This past Monday, while I was taking selfies of us together, he was getting a kick out of seeing himself on my phone screen,  smiling at himself.  So sweet.  He tries to reach out and touch the screen, but his hand/eye coordination is not there yet, so he either overshoots it or doesn't quite make it, but it's very fun to watch him try.

Not only did I get to play with Arek, but I got to help Ani with the Thanksgiving preparations. Growing up in Los Angeles, we were blessed to have my grandmother live nearby.  In fact, she lived on the corner of our street and was always there for us while we were growing up.    Always for Christmas and Easter, and any other special occasion, my grandma would make the yalanchi, the stuffed grapeleaves which were creamy smooth with their filling of rice, onion, pinenuts, currants, dill, allspice and cinnamon.  She would call me over telling me she needed my help, but in retrospect I understand that what she was doing was teaching me how to soak the leaves, trim the stems, make the filling, roll the sarma.  After my grandmother passed away, I took on the tradition of making her traditional recipe for family feasts. This week Ani called and said that she would like to take on that tradition for Thanksgiving.  Isn't that cool?  So Monday, we packed up Arek (his diaper bag, bottle, stroller, Mobi wrap, change of clothes, pacifier and blankie) and  took a trip to the Armenian market to buy all the ingredients.  After buying what we needed (along with a bag of chili mangos for the trip home - which we didn't need), we headed back to the house.  I watched her follow my recipe to make the filling, and while it cooked,  the two of us together stood at the sink, trimming the little stems from the leaves we had been soaking in water, setting aside the torn leaves to line the pan, just like my grandmother taught me.  It was such a beautiful revelation to see how full circle I had come.  

If you remember, last week, I posted a list of things I am grateful for.  I have been continuing my goal of thinking of 5 things a day that I have grateful for. And although I won't list all 35 for you, here are some of things I thought of this week:

Today I am grateful for...

1.  Being employed by a company that offers me full health benefits.  I have been on the flip side of that coin, and let me tell you, my stress levels are so much lessened because I have health insurance.

2.  My caregivers...the team of doctors and nurses that help maintain my health including my primary, oncologist, gastroenterologist, orthopedist, and all their nurses.

3.  Family traditions that help us remember the past and how we got here.

4.  Having family that live nearby to share the holidays with

5.  The abundance that we so easily take for granted.  Just look around.   

6.   Old friends - the kind that understand how busy my life is and so when I do end up seeing them, it's like no time went by in between visits.

7.   My relationship with God

8.   Time spent with my mom discussing her past, childhood stories, and days gone by.

9.   Good morning hugs from my husband

10. Early morning appointments that leave the rest of my day open to do things I need to do.  

11.  The ability to express myself through my art

12.  My glasses.  I never really thought about it, but I rely on them to see.  Life without them would be a blur.
13.  Our In His Shoes outreach that keeps our focus on spreading love to others

These are some of the items that made it on to my Gratitude list.  What about you? Did you give it a try?  Tell you what, try to make it a point this Thanksgiving, and all year, to be thankful not only for the beautiful family, friendships and love that we're surrounded with, but also for the little things that bring so much flavor and joy to our lives.

A couple mornings ago, a friend had posted a video on Facebook about Empathy vs. Sympathy.  If you're friends with me on Facebook, you probably noticed that I shared it because I thought it was so good.  

RSA Shorts Video - The Power of Empathy

The video brings into light our reactions to those who are struggling around us.  Have you ever been in a situation where a friend shares with you about something they're going through.  I'm talking about something tough/difficult. You want to help and be there for them...but you have absolutely no clue what to say because you've never been there/done that.  So you go into this mode of trying to make their situation seem not so bad, or silver-line their cloud.  I loved what the narrator of the video says, "Rarely can a response make something better.  What makes it better is connection."  It's true, right?  When your friend shares their pain with you, they're not looking for a solution.  What they are doing is just sharing. They need an outlet.  And there's really nothing you can do to make the situation better other than pray for them, of course, but what you CAN do is just be there for your friend.  In order to CONNECT with your friend or family member though, you have to find that emotion inside of your self and share that in that feeling letting them know you understand and that you're there for them.  

I started thinking about this concerning two things.  The first of these is our In His Shoes homeless outreach.  Why are we so successful in reaching out to those in need?  Our program has been ongoing for the past 6 or 7 years.  I think the key is this empathetic response.  Putting ourselves in the shoes of others who are suffering  We're not just there handing out food.  We are there to listen, to hug, to show love and compassion.  To give them their dignity back.  To care.  And we do this because we too have been there.  We explain quite often that we understand what they are going through because we ourselves, as an Armenian people, have been hungry, homeless, naked, afraid.  We're there to help.  It's entirely nonjudgemental but more of a change of our perspective and also in their perspective of how we are perceived.  When they understand that we have walked in their shoes, we are suddenly not offering a hand out as much as a hand up.

We can use this response when dealing with illness as well.  I know this one really well.  I remember when I was diagnosed with cancer.  It's difficult.  It was tough for me, but it's also difficult for the friend or family member that is trying to say the right thing.  I mean, you have cancer.  What can someone possibly say to you that will make you feel better.  A positive diagnosis wreaks it's havoc in your head.  Am I going to survive?  Am I going to die?  Who will raise my children? What if it comes back?  In those dark days, what helped the most were the friends and family that had no idea what to say at all (because really, what can you say?)  If you can just imagine yourself in that position and how terrifying it is, you can call up an emotion within yourself to walk in that person's shoes. And then just be there with them.  Don't try to make the situation better.  It's okay to say that you don't know what to say, or that you wish you knew what to do, but you don't...and then just be present for them.

Empathy is feeling with someone.  Sharing what they're going through.  Sympathy is the detached, version of that.  Christ was empathetic to humanity.  He didn't sit back and feel sorry for the sick, the hungry, the poor.  He brought himself to them, walked with them, held them, and He is still there for us in our time of need.  To those of us who believe, we are never alone in our suffering. 

I've posted the video here.  I'd love to hear what you think of it, so please feel free to shoot me an email or leave a comment.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving.  On Thursday, most all of us here in the states will be gathering together with family and friends to give thanks for all we have.  I was thinking about it today.  How cool is that?  That our country has a day where we're supposed to stop everything and come together and be grateful for our lives, and those we share it with.  For some though, it's a difficult day as well.  While the Norman Rockwell painting shows the perfect family sitting down to the turkey dinner, not all families are loving.  Not all families get along.  If this is the case, the day may be filled with trepidation or fear of confrontation. 

Or maybe you do have a great relationship with those in your family, but you have a tough time with all the food.  If you've struggled with weight issues, like me, this day and its food, it's easy to self sabotage.  So for those of you that are walking in MY shoes, I just want to invite you to take a step back this Thanksgiving, and make yourself "present".  Pause.  Breathe.  Remember that it's not what's on the table, but who's around it.  Tell your family how much you love them.  Hug your Auntie Zabelle.  Listen about Keri Hagop's trip to Chermoog...yet again.  Enjoy the day, not for the food, but for the beauty of family, togetherness, love, and happiness.  Savor your food but be mindful while eating - tasting every bite that was prepared especially for you with love.  Sounds good right?  Above all, take some time to be still and think about all that you have been blessed with and give thanks.  

Wishing you all a very beautiful, blessed and Happy Thanksgiving! 

Here's gramma's yalanchi recipe if you'd like to give it a try:  Click Here and visit my page on HubPages.com

Homelessness, HomeWalk LA, and being Grateful (Audio)

ITP #39: This week brought with it two opportunities to reach out to the homeless community. Hear about this month's homeless outreach and some of the challenges facing families in the shelter and how you can help. And then there's that Gratitude List Anush said she's share with you. Take a listen Inside the Pomegranate.
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for epostle.net
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Homelessness, HomeWalk LA, and being Grateful

Our crew for this months' homeless outreach including
Yn Susan, Me, Fr. Vazken, Meline (Harout's mom), Sonig
and Kevork (Harout's aunt and uncle) and Ani T.

If you tuned in to last week's episode of the Next Step with Fr. Vazken, or if you're friends with "In His Shoes" on Facebook, you've no doubt heard about our homeless outreach last Thursday evening.  I've talked out our In His Shoes homeless outreach quite often....in fact I feel like I'm talking about it all the time.  But it's important.  And I wanted to mention what a beautiful gesture it is when a meal is donated in memory of a loved one to those who have no way of repaying the kindness.  A couple months ago, the Hamparian family donated the meal in memory of their daughter Cathia.  This month the meal was donated in memory of Harout Mekhdjian by his family.  We've had many other donors who have donated in memory of a dear father and husband, sister or a mother.  And in all these instances, I can tell you that the families leave the shelter after a night of service feeling uplifted.  This past week was no different.

We arrived at the shelter at 5:00 p.m. to prep for a 6:00 p.m. dinner.  After unloading the car, we started cooking.  There were mashed potatoes and stuffing to be made.  Harout's mom and aunt and uncle were offering a prayer of Thanksgiving for their son and nephew's life, by preparing a Thanksgiving meal with all the trimmings for the shelter residents.  Together we worked.   We all had our jobs.  I have never made such a huge pot of mashed potatoes...it was something like 28 cups of water, 14 cups of milk, 8 sticks of butter, and packet after packet of mashed potatoes!  The turkeys were prepped ahead of time and kept warm in the oven.  There was cranberry sauce and gravy to go with the potatoes and stuffing.  Salad, pumpkin pie with whipped cream.  As we worked happily in the kitchen, I noticed a little girl looking at us through the window.  The kitchen at the shelter has a glass window where we can serve and pass the meals over.  And this little girl was watching us.  If she were a bit taller she would have been able to press her nose to the glass, but she was still a little too short.  She answered with a nod when I asked if she was hungry.

The shelter is home to families...and this month we had a record number of children.  The little

girl looked familiar.  I normally remember the kids from month to month and I like to surprise them by remembering their names.  But I couldn't remember her name or when I had seen her last.  But her face stumped me.  As we were cooking, the residents starting returning to the shelter, which is closed during the day as the men and women go off to look for work, and the children go to school. Some of the children were playing together in the main room while we cooked and I saw a mother with a baby in a stroller.  I had definitely seen her before and then it all clicked.  Last year, my siblings and our families had "adopted" a family for Christmas fulfilling their wish lists for clothing and gifts.  The little girl was four last Christmas but was tiny wearing only a size 2 toddler.  Now at five, she had grown a little bit more, but was still small.  The family that we adopted - who were then in transitional housing after  a fire had devasted their home - were now back at the shelter.  The mother, who was very pregnant last year, had had her baby - Gabriel.   I went up to her and reintroduced myself.  She remembered.  After commenting on how her children had grown so beautifully, I asked what had happened.  Plain and simple, she answered the funding for housing had run out.  Without that, they found themselves back on the street.  With four children, and having nowhere to turn, she came back to the shelter.  Grateful as she was to be inside, the shelter had no beds for them, and so for the time being, they were being allowed to sleep on the floor of the waiting room on blankets.  

I really can't imagine what I would do in this situation if I couldn't rely on my family or friends.  It would be so scary and difficult to be homeless just by myself, but throw my young children into the situation?  I don't know how I would manage.  I didn't know what I could possibly say.  I asked, "What's next?  What's going to happen?"  She didn't have an answer  She was hoping for some type of program that will help them get into housing.  "Hopefully," she said.   For the time being, she was grateful that they had a roof to sleep under and were off the street.

One of the things I've noticed about Ascencia is that because of it's small size, the residents all become a part of each other's family, sort of.  It's not uncommon to see the children sitting with their friends while the mom's sit and talk together at their table over dinner.  It's intimate enough for parents to keep an eye on their kids and for the children to feel safe.   Her younger children seemed unphased by all they had been through.  I'm guessing it was because this type of trauma had become their norm.  They sat with some of the other children, eating, laughing, playing with their food like children do.  Angel, her son, remembered me and came up asking me if I remembered his name.   I needed a hint and asked what letter it started with.   Once he said "A", I remembered.  And then Chris and Lauren who have been there for the past few months asked me if I remembered their names too. Of course I did.  : )  I worry about these kids during the month.   I wonder how this will effect all of them.  The one that I fear is most affected is the teenage daughter who is about 14 but already looked mature and street smart for her age.  I noticed that she was sitting with the women, listening to their talking and complaints, learning about life from these women there who have no support systems and no one to rely on. These women who have been abused and neglected.  I think about my own teenage niece who has a loving family, is doing well in school, has interests and hobbies and parents that nurture and love her.  Even when you have everything going for you, being a teen is tough when you think about it.  So then what are this girl's odds of getting out of this situation unscathed given the emotional, psychological and physical trauma she's had to endure at a young age?

Fun pics from HomeWalkLA 2014 with
my husband Ned, niece Madi and dear
friend Nancy

I don't have the answer, but I can't sit back and do nothing either. And so we walked.  This past Saturday, Team In Her Shoes participated in HomeWalk L.A.  This is a  5K walk/run organized by United Way.  It was our 7th year participating.  And this year there were a record number of us walkers:  13,000 of us took to the streets of Los Angeles to raise money and awareness for the homeless of our city.  I want to thank those of you who donated to my walk!  This year's walk generated $1.3 million dollars to be used for helping LA's homeless population.  With the money raised, 1,300 families will be housed!!!  I hope and pray that our little family in Glendale will be able to reap the benefits of our efforts.

As we walked through the streets we learned about homelessness in our city.  There are 40,000 documented homeless men, women and children in LA.  If you count the undocumented in with them, it is estimated that there is closer to 53,000.  It's heartbreaking, isn't it?  Everyone deserves a home, a place to feel safe.  53,000 of us here in our city don't have that luxury. When you look at the even broader picture, the statistic is even more staggering. The National Center on Family Homelessness reports "One in 45 children experience homelessness in America each year.  That's over 1.6 million children.  While homeless, they experience high rates of acute and chronic health problems.  The constant barrage of stressful and traumatic experience also has profound effects on their development and ability to learn."  

So where am I going with all of this?  I don't have the answer.  Well, I guess that's not really true. What we can do...what we can ALL do is to keep them in our prayers.   AND we can extend the hand

of friendship and love to them as our brothers and sisters.  I understand.  Not all homeless people are friendly, but most are used to being invisible.  When I get off my bus in downtown, it's 6:45 in the morning when I start walking the few blocks to work.   I've got my headphones in as do probably 80% of those that I pass.  There are homeless individuals who are just waking up from a night on the street.  I can choose to keep my headphones in and pass them by acting like I don't hear them asking for help.  Or I can take the headphones off and address them.   I can't always help, but I can always acknowledge that I hear them.  I can always say hello and listen.  I can always show them compassion and treat them as I would want to be treated.  Last week, I challenged my readers to get involved in their local shelters.  Offer to serve or cook a meal, donate clothing, adopt a family for the holidays.  Remember always that without our own support systems (our family and friends), it would be very easy for us to be in their shoes.  So lets help by walking in the shoes of those that are suffering, and offer a helping hand whenever we can.  It's what we're called to do. 

Finally, last week I said I was going to share a Thanksgiving list with you.  Stuff to be grateful for.  I

What if it really happened?  What would you have?

actually started doing this last month and have continued well into this month and will take it beyond. I've been trying to do FIVE a day, and I'll tell you, it's really changed my perspective so much on all that I have in this beautiful life.  So here I will just share some of them with you in the hopes that you'll share some of yours with me!

So here;s my Gratitude List so far:

I am grateful for....

1.  This beautiful day that God has put in front of me.

2.  Our beautiful grandchildren Arek and Grace who bring so much joy into my life.

3.  The ability to swing a kettle bell and bend my knees today (I have arthritis and some days the inflammation is terribly painful...but for today, the knees are good!

4.  My mom and the relationship I share with her

5.  A boss that listened to me when I told her my job was unfulfilling to me unless I could be creative.....and allowed me to work a 4 day week and keep my benefits, so I could spend time growing my business.  Or the fact that she doesn't flip out when I tell her I'm going to be late when I have to take mom to the doctor.

6.  My faith...that teaches me love, compassion, tolerance and forgiveness of others (although I'm still working on being loving, compassionate and forgiving of myself)

7.  My husband who truly is my understanding and caring partner

8.  The relationship I share with my children.  I am blessed to be close to both my daughter and son.

9.  Cloudy mornings that are so beautiful and chilly

10.  Music...and it's ability to color my life with memories

11.  Running water/plumbing:  I am always reminded of how lucky I am to have clean water, plumbing, the ability to shower and wash myself when I see my friends on the street.  

12. My sister, brothers, and their spouses.  The support and love that we give to one another makes life so much easier.

13.  Good coffee

14.  A variety of healthy beautifully colored fruits and vegetables

15.  Friendly people at the bus stop that make my wait nicer

16  My health!

17.  The ability to buy groceries and pay my bills

18.  A phone that allows me to see photos of my grandson and how quickly he's growing

19.  Bright, sunny and windy fall days like today

20.  Heating that makes my home warm and cozy on chilly evenings

21.  My kitties who love me unconditionally

22.  Dear friends to share life's ups and downs with

23.  Healthcare - I've seen both sides of this one, and life is so much easier when you have health insurance!

24.  The ability to create, visualize, and actualize a project to completion

25.  Curiosity that keeps me wanting to learn new things and figure out stuff

------I'll keep adding to the list daily and I hope it will encourage you to take a look at all that is beautiful in your lives too!

 If you'd like to share your list (or anything else with me), or if you'd like more information about sponsoring one of our homeless outreach meals, please email me at anushnoor@gmail.com or you can find me on facebook too!  Or feel free to leave your comments!

Also, we're full swing into our Thanksgiving canned food drive.  If you're in our local area of Glendale, CA and would like to participate, please bring your dry and canned goods to our church by next Sunday, November 23rd.  We'll be boxing up food and turkeys for Thanksgiving distribution on on Thanksgiving eve. 

Catching Up....Has it really been Six Months? (Audio)

ITP #38: The past 6 months have flown by. Anush is back and playing "catch up " in this episode: from grandparenthood, World Adoption Day, to the illustration of her second book, tackling fears about work (and making it work!), to walking for the homeless...it's all inside! Inside the Pomegranate!
Links: Anush's email
Story of Nareg
Anush's HomeWalk Donation Page
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for epostle.net
Look for Inside the Pomegranate on BluBrry
Subscribe to Inside the Pomegranate by Email
Get Inside the Pomegranate on iTunes

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Catching Up....Has it really been Six Months?

What?  Is it really November already and have I truly not posted since May???  That's, like, six months! How can that be?  It's crazy how time has just flown by, but I guess it's true.  I took a break, but life didn't.  And during all these weeks that have flown by, I want you to know that I seriously did give my blog and my podcast thought.  I wanted to post and record,  but I was looking for that perfect time - the time to just sit down at my computer, collect my thoughts, and reconnect, but it just never came.  And so this morning....this beautiful morning, with last week's craft show behind me, and regrouting our kitchen sink ahead of me, I decided to put the brakes on and well, here I am!

So much has happened since we were together last.  It's hard to put it all in order, but I'll try. The
most amazing, and wonderful, and life-changing thing that has happened is that I am now Medzig to our new baby grandson, Arek!  My daughter and son-in-law were blessed with a beautiful little boy on Labor Day, September 1...and then we, in turn, were blessed as well!  And life, as we know it, has changed.  I am in love with my grandson.   My cell phone is overloaded with photos of him, and I can now understand Mamajan's (my mom's) obsession with taking photos of us all.  They are what I look at between visits with my grandbaby.  What a blessing.  He is 10 weeks old, and when he smiles at me, it just melts my heart.  

Smiling for Medzig!!!

I had always heard about the joys of being a grandparent, but until you're here, you don't understand it. I'm the one in the crowd holding my cellphone ready to show pictures of Arek to anyone and everyone.   Complete strangers even!  And although I get it....not everyone shares my excitement,.. it's hard to contain. My heart is just overflowing with love.

But it's not only about having a grandson, but there's another huge factor in this happiness:  It's  about our children.  When your child is born, you pray to God for His protection, wisdom and blessings on them.  When Ani was still pregnant, we were talking about her worries about labor, delivery, motherhood.  It's all fear of the unknown, right?  I told her not to worry (that part was totally normal) but to pray, and have faith.  And then I realized something pretty profound:  Since the day I found out I was pregnant with Ani, and since the day we knew about the possibility of adopting Nareg,  I have prayed for them EVERY DAY!  I can honestly say that other than waking up in the morning, there is not ONE thing that I can say I have done every single day other than pray and give thanks for my children.  That's a lot of prayers!!!   If you are parents of faith, you know what I'm talking about right?  Praying for our families, our children, is a daily thing....even several times a day sometimes.  We give thanks for them, we pray for their safety going to and from school, we pray that God give them the needed wisdom to focus on a test, or that they choose the right friends, make the right decisions.  We pray for their health, we give thanks for the sticky hugs and kisses.  And we pray for openness to accept God's will for them, whatever that may be.  

And miraculously, it all comes together.  It was just yesterday that I blogged about the two of them getting married, and now Ani and Eric are parents!.  There's a joy that fills my heart when I see them with their new baby.  So caring, so loving.  In just the short couple of months that have gone by since Arek was born they can't imagine their lives without him.  I had gone over for a visit (seriously, I can't go more than 3 days without my Arek fix).  Eric and Ani were sharing about their past trip to Italy and how beautiful it was.  I told them that they would just need to go back in a few years.  And that they could leave Arek with us.  And I really loved what Eric shared with me. He shared that growing up, his parents never went on vacation without them.  That his greatest childhood memories were of those vacations together.  Sitting around campfires, or traveling together.  And that's what he and Ani hoped to do with their children too.  It was beautiful to see how full circle we had come. Thinking back to when our kids were young, it was the same way with my parents when we were young.  Our modest camping vacations or trips to local beaches and mountains hold the best memories.  Collecting shells, climbing tide pools, building sandcastle, finding colorful fall leaves and acorns.  Simple things that glue us together with beautiful memories.  Needless to say I'm so proud of them both. Arek is a lucky little boy! 

But I have been blessed with two children, and I am equally as proud of my son Nareg.  Recently his girlfriend brought to my attention that this past Sunday, November 9 was World Adoption Day.  How beautiful.  A day where we acknowledge adoption and families that are made possible because of it. As I was going through my past photos, looking for pictures to share of my son and I, I couldn't help but think about Nareg through the years and how far he had come.  How much he has grown, and how rich our lives are because of the decision to adopt.  Last year I shared with you the Story of Nareg and how we were blessed with our son.  It was 24 years ago that he joined our family.  And since that day he has brought his positive energy, love, and inner joy to our family despite the adversities he has faced.  Just the other day, he had found a little school picture of himself.  I think it was his 6th grade photo so it would have been about 2 years after he was adopted.  There he was with a little gel in his wavy hair, his always warm smile.  I flashed back to him on his bike when he did a daredevil ride down the Wilkie's steep driveway and crashed into the fence across the street, or the time I got a call from the neighbor that he was setting leaves on fire in their back yard, or that he had turned trashcans over one street up.  And then i remembered the day in the kitchen when he was just our foster child prior to the adoption, when he asked us if we would adopt him.  Going to his jazz band concerts, basketball games, the uncanny way he would memorize baseball stats, I remembered all those things, but mostly his loving nature. That little boy i the picture is still in there, he's just all grown up on the outside now.  Anyways, I wanted to just share a little with you about how blessed we have been to have adopted Nareg.  He grew in my heart, and I am so blessed and fortunate to be able to call myself his mom.

I almost forgot one other big reason why I haven't been here.  Prior to Arek's birth, about 2

Panel from my new book showing the priest pouring the
holy muron into the baptismal font

months prior, I was commissioned again by the Armenian Church Eastern Diocese to illustrate my second book!  This time the book is about baptism in the Armenian church.  The format of the book will be the same, The only stipulation of my acceptance of the job was that they wanted all the illustrations done by September...and it was the end of June when they contacted me.  That's not a lot of time when you have a full time day job, have family responsibilities and want to spend time helping your expectant daughter, but I said yes!

My first book, "When I Go To Church" was illustrated with colored pencil and pen and ink. I've always worked in pencil, doing a lot of layering of colors to get the right color saturation.  This time around I used a new medium....Prismacolor markers, and it just made the job so much easier, brighter and faster...and therefore, more FUN! It was an intense couple of months but I was able to get the illustrations done on time.  Arek was born, and I had just a week to get the illustrations shipped out to New York, but I did it!   The book is off to the printer now, and I'm told it will be published in time for Christmas this year!  I'll definitely let you know when it's available.

And then another exciting thing (see, I'm filled with all kinds of exciting stuff, right?)  I had been struggling for the past few  years about my job in the insurance world.  I came into this job out of necessity.  It's not a creative job.  And for me, it's been very stifling in an "energy suck" sort of way.  After months of feeling stuck I thought of a plan: what if I worked 4 days a week and used one day to work on my jewelry and art?  It sounded good but I was sure my boss wouldn't go for it.  Another consideration was my benefits.  Given all my health and cancer issues, I was afraid of losing my health insurance.  Anyways, I just prayed about it....all the time telling myself they weren't going to go for it but at the same time asking God to please make something happen for me.   Along with my unhappiness, my attitude just kept getting  worse and worse.  I would go to work early in the morning, come home drained, deal with home and family, no creative outlet...I felt like that part of me was dying.  I had to do something.  And I did.

One morning, God gave me the courage to go in and talk to my boss.  I told her how I was feeling. Surprisingly, she was actually supportive.  She told me she didn't want to lose me and so if this was what I needed to do, that she would see what we could do to make it work.  Imagine that.  Working a 10 hour day wouldn't work because of overtime issues, but we figured out how many hours I would need to work in order to keep my benefits.  And she made it happen.  So I'm now working a 4 day work week.  And it's really amazing how just getting that extra day to be creative has helped change my attitude for the better.  The weekends have always been so full of chores and family, church and catching up.  So having that extra day has been just what I needed.  I've been able to focus my energy on making new designs in my jewelry and drawings.  And having that creative outlet has really helped my productivity at my job too.  Though my hours are longer, I try to get everything done in four days rather than five and come Friday, I am so happy to be done for the week with 3 days ahead of me.

So, take it from me, don't be afraid to dream and make it happen.  I was so sure that this was not going to be something that would be happening for me.  I had worked out every scenario in my head as to what my boss was going to say as to why my plan wouldn't work.  That was all fear.  Through prayer I got the courage to act and when the time was right, it happened.

Last month's homeless outreach, my sister
Susan and I working the sundae bar for
the residents there!!! Would you like
whipped cream with that??

Let's see, what else?  Our homeless outreach is still happening on a monthly basis.  We'll be at Ascencia, Glendale's homeless shelter this coming Thursday evening. We've been faithfully serving our homeless brothers and sisters there each month, and we are seeing more families with children.  This month is no exception.  Sadly. Want to get involved?   I'm sure there is a shelter in your local area. I'd like to encourage all of you to give them a call and see how you can get involved.  This time of year, I'm sure their needs are even greater as the holidays are approaching the weather is getting colder.  You can offer to serve a meal there, or organize your friends/family to cook dinner for the residents.  You could take it a step further and consider adopting a needy family for the holidays by providing clothing and toys for them for Christmas.  If nothing more, maybe you can drop of yused clothing or canned goods or some furniture for families in transition, I'm sure your help will be welcomed and greatly appreciated.  And if you'd like to donate to our In His Shoes Homeless outreach, please email me directly, and let me know:  anushnoor@gmail.com

This coming Saturday, our In His Shoes outreach group will be walking to raise awareness at Home Walk L.A., and annual event held to raise money and awareness for the homeless in our city.  This year, everything that we raise will be matched, so a $10 donation is like $20!  $50 is $100!  If you'd like to donate, I'll include the link to my donation page on today's show (or click this link!) . 

Our In His Shoes Team of Walkers at Home Walk L.A. 2013
Walking to end homelessness!

And finally, Given that we're in the month of November, and it's the month of Thanksgiving, I'm going to be adding something to be thankful for every day of this month....and I'll share part of it list with you next week....and we'll just keep it going for the month of November, and maybe even beyond!
Share with me!  Leave a comment on my blog about what you're thankful for.

We have so much.  We're so blessed.