I saw this quote on the "Make a Wish" foundation website:

"Very few things in life can give you more satisfaction than knowing you made a difference in the life of a child." I have always loved working with children. I always wanted to be a teacher. Why I didn't pursue that, I will never know. Stupidity comes to mind. Anyway, college got in the way, I just wasn't thinking. A B.A. in Spanish--THAT'S it. Good for nuttin'. Ended up teaching pre school which I loved. No money. Ended up at MCI (then WorldCom) and got caught up in the corporate whirlwind they call a career, and (18)years later with my 401K flushed down the crapper after the WorldCom fiasco, I was laid off. After I got laid off from WorldCom, I was forced to make some choices. I didn't want to re-enter that corporate world, never. With my oldest daughter hitting the teen years, I really wanted to be home in the afternoons with her. (Those were MY trouble times as a teen!) Hence, my next "career" move!

For the last three years, I have been a one on one aide for a 13 year old boy with Down Syndrome. I am honest when I tell you I love him like he is one of my own. Suddenly, it clicked for me. I WAS making the difference in the life of him, and even his friends and the other 6th graders I adore. Not to mention, I am now at home with my kids in the afternoons, a double edge sword--but one I wouldn't trade in. I sure hope I make a difference in their lives!

My summer gig is as a head counselor for a well known, much loved day camp in our area. It is a magical place--a place that if you're not a part of it, it's hard to understand why it is so special. Next to Disney, it truly is the happiest place on earth. We just finished our six week stint, and I have never been more fulfilled, more exhausted, more tired of the heat, more happy than I am now. I had a camper tell me that I was the best counselor she ever had. Forget the paycheck, I'll take that to the bank. My campers were always smiling and laughing (when they weren't complaining about the heat--which was rare, the complaining that is, not the heat!)

I am always quick to beat myself up about the things I don't do well. I am very critical of myself overall. I (and I think we all) take for granted the things we do well. After this camp season, I felt better about myself than I have for a long time. It is those things that we do well, (that we take for granted) that bring us, and those around us the most joy. That sounds like a simple pleasure and it is. It is one that I will rejoice about and for which I will give thanks.