Posted on the first anniversary of my Pepere’s passing.

I absolutely adored my Pepere* Hebert. He was a man larger than life and a heart of gold. When I was younger as a joke he would take the Doritos that I would have with my lunch, which would send me into a fit of crying because those were my favorite chips. As I grew older I saw both a silly and sensitive side to my Pepere. One day he would be giving his bride, his wife of over 50 (maybe 60) years a hotdog as a Christmas present, the next he’d be comforting me over the phone and reminding me that he loved me as I cried about lost friendships. I adored this man that would do anything for his family, that would do anything to see me smile. He was my hero saving the day countless times whether it was pulling a pin my sister had gotten stuck in her foot out of her foot (because I was too scared and squeamish to do it myself) or whether it was driving two hours to pick up my prom date whose car had broken down so that I didn’t have to go to prom alone. Every weekend he would take a leisurely ride past those of the children and grandchildren who lived in the area. My mom tells me he did this to make sure we were all ok. I grew up visiting him and my Memere almost every Friday night. If we ever skipped a Friday he was sure to call on Saturday asking when we were coming over. And when we were about to leave he would also exclaim “sabre** come again.” Anyone who visited was sure to feel welcome by the warmth of my Memere and Pepere’s home and the love that they exuded. Both of them were so generous with their time, treasure, and talent.

Perhaps the greatest lesson that my Pepere taught me was to never give up. Though he had several health issues he was never one to sit on the sidelines and wait for death. He found different ways of doing his hobbies. Around Thanksgiving of 2022 both my grandparent’s health declined and they were both in the hospital. My Pepere pressed on and started doing better. My Memere’s health unfortunately declined and she passed away on December 23rd (I’ll write a letter about how much I loved her later on). The funeral for her came and went. The months in between my sweet Pepere couldn’t catch a break. His health was declining. My mom and her sister would visit every day to take care of him and help him with things. In February my parents came downstate (I live 7 hours away from them but still in the same state) to attend another loved one’s funeral. After the funeral we got the news that my Pepere’s health was declining and the end was near. I packed my bag and made the choice to head up North to see him one last time. Little did I know that I would be the one that he would choose to be beside him holding his hand when he was actively dying. I noticed his eyes were sort of open, but they were a different color than the deep brown they had always been and they were glazed over. I called for my mom and she told me it wouldn’t be long. She was right. He passed away within minutes.

I took bereavement time off from work to attend the funeral and to process all that had happened. Trying to move forward and to create some sense of normalcy I decided to go to a little café/gift shop for breakfast that day. I ordered and ate my breakfast. Then I lingered to look at what was in the gift shop. Amanda Gorman’s book “Call Us What We Carry” caught my eye. I debated whether or not to buy it in my head. As if reading my thoughts this little old man seated at a table not far away asks if I know who that is to which I respond yes. He then asks if I am going to buy the book and I answer that I am not sure. Without skipping a beat this man pulls out $20 and places it in my hand and tells me to buy the book. He tells me he does a nice thing for someone every day and today I was the recipient of his kindness. I could’ve cried right then and there. This man didn’t know me, he didn’t know that I had just lost my Pepere, he didn’t know I was grieving, he didn’t know that I had come to this café to find some normalcy when my world had been crumbling down. The only thing this man knew was that his kindness mattered. That moment didn’t cure the grief that I was and that I still feel about the passing of my Pepere, but it sure did bring a smile to my face. I believe that my Pepere put this man in my path to show me that he was watching over me.

That day the little old man was a testament to the quote “everyone is fighting a battle we know nothing about. Be kind.” I issue that same challenge to you today. Be kind to everyone you meet. It doesn’t have to mean buying something for someone, it could be as simple as smiling at someone or opening the door for them or entering into conversation with a stranger. You’ll never know how your kindness will impact another person. Let us choose to carry kindness with us wherever we go.

*Pepere is the French word for grandfather. It is pronounced pep/ehh. Memere is the French word for grandmother. It is pronounced mem-ehh.

**Sabre cannot be directly translated but is a French expression that indicates happiness, joy, contentment. And it was always said with that disposition too.

I’ve been where you are. I’ve always been a bit of a perfectionist myself. I don’t think that’s all bad as we are called to excellence. However, it can make life kind of stressful. Your need for perfection can then spiral into overthinking every little move you make, criticizing yourself for things outside of your control, and shame that is totally unnecessary. You look in the mirror to find that your own worst enemy is staring back at you. You worry that if you make one mistake that people will see you as incapable and incompetent. You’ll show them you can do it all. Until you can’t. Suddenly you feel yourself teetering on the tightrope about to plummet to the ground. This was me before the pandemic started. I believed the lie that this rat race world feeds us that we must stay busy, we must produce results. So I took on added responsibility thinking I could juggle it all and also what was going on in my personal life. But really I was on the edge of burnout. My mental health was not good. My work was suffering. I was exhausted. To make matters worse my boss talked to me about my performance without asking what was going on in my personal life that was making it that way. She seemed to see my poor performance as a character flaw rather than the fact that a check engine light was on, and I desperately needed help. Deeply distressed and beating myself up for my mistakes I ended up with a fender bender. Luckily no one was hurt, but inside I was really hurting.

In 2020 the pandemic forced everything to a screeching halt. I went to my parents, house with no idea of how long I was going to be there. My parents and I were all working at home under one roof. The extra family time was a much needed blessing. My schedule usually filled to the brim with things to do was completely open for the first time in a long time. I didn’t know what to do with myself. I ended up doing a lot of thinking and realized that I don’t need to do everything. I am human, I make mistakes and I’m going to continue to. When I do make a mistake I can choose how I respond. I can choose to respond with grace and self-compassion. I don’t have to spiral, I don’t have to walk the tight rope. A mistake doesn’t automatically mean falling. I started to prioritize more and suddenly I was worrying less and less about what others thought about my mistakes and taking the opportunity to let my mistakes teach me a lesson.

Sweetheart I know you want to move mountains and you will. But spiraling won’t get you there. Beating yourself up won’t make you stronger, instead it will tear you down more. You need to learn to rest. You need to learn that your mistakes don’t define you. Learn to embrace your humanity. Learn to love yourself the way that you would love a friend. You are worthy of love. You are worthy of self-forgiveness. You are worthy to live a life that includes mistakes because if you haven’t noticed everyone else is too. When you learn these things you’ll be freer, happier, healthier, and holier. If you don’t hear anything else in this letter hear this; unlike St. Paul, you can’t be everything to everybody, but instead of being your own biggest enemy, you can learn to look in the mirror and embrace yourself in grace and self-compassion.

With love,

Kris,

I heard that your battle has become more challenging recently. That’s all I needed to hear to take the time to let you know that as part of your Unsealed family, we got your back Kris! This means as you and your family are in need of added strength I’d like to offer you even more prayers for your body to WIN THE FIGHT! More positive thoughts and vibes for you and everyone who supports you because they need it too. More blessings for the medical treatments provided to help defeat the opponent of your health.

I’m thankful I was able to hear you tell your story in our Unsealed meeting. Just know that your message was heard loud and clear. I have since made changes in my own life to improve my health because I felt inspired to do so. As great as your meeting was it would be even better to hear you tell your story again of your incredible comeback! Keep fighting and we’ll fight with you!!!!

Be blessed,

Jamie Ellifritz
Massillon, Ohio
Member – The Unsealed – November 2020

From the moment I was born you were mine. My parents had chosen you to be my godmother, a duty which you took very seriously. When I look back you were always there for every one of my milestones; my Baptism, my first few words, my first steps, my first haircut, my Confirmation and First Communion, my high school graduation. You were even there when I got my acceptance letter to St. Joseph’s College. When I moved into St. Joe’s you took me under your wing and made sure I always knew that I had a safe place to go when I wanted to get off campus. You enjoyed spending time with me and even invited me on outings like going blueberry picking with you, your daughter, and your granddaughter. You became my second mom when my mom was 7 hours away.

And then unexpectedly you passed. There was no warning. There was no chance to say goodbye. You were gone. I remember where I was when I got the call. My entire floor had just gone to a trampoline park and we were hungry so we went to get ice cream. I saw my mom had texted me but thought nothing of it when she said “call me.” My sister texted me and told me to call mom. I texted back “why? Is it an emergency?” She responded “yes.” I excused myself from the group and ran to my RA’s car and called my mom. I could hear on the other end she was crying. She told me that you had passed and suddenly I couldn’t breathe. I crumbled in a ball. I remember my mom asking “Hannah are you ok?” I don’t remember what I said. I remember my RA, a guy I didn’t know very well, and the girls on my floor coming back to the car and finding me weeping. My RA asked what was wrong and all I could get out between sobs were “SHE. IS. GONE.” It didn’t take long for denial and then shock and then loneliness to set in. I remember after the funeral we walked the middle aisle to the back of the church as a family. I remember everyone grabbing onto each other’s hand, but I had one hand free. The hand that you would have held if you were still alive. I didn’t know how I was going to live one day without you, let alone 8 years.

Grief still steals the air right out of my lungs sometimes, but I like to think that since you have gone I have been managing my grief and learning to breathe again. In the 8 years since you have been gone I have been working to build and live a life that you would be proud of. There are so many life milestones that I wish you could’ve been here for. Still I have to believe that you’ve seen them or at least know about them. Let’s start from the beginning. I graduated from St. Joseph’s with a bachelor’s degree in theology with minors in secondary education and psychology. From there I moved to Southern Maine and started my first job working for the Diocese. 4 years later I am still working there and I love what I get to do and who I get to meet through this job. Shortly after I graduated undergrad I decided to apply for grad school and was accepted to Felician University’s Master of Arts in Religious Education program. In the middle of this the pandemic happened. I began counseling in order to heal wounds from the past. And oh what a year 2022 was. I graduated with my Master’s and our family had a party to celebrate. I know you would’ve been there if you could’ve been. Family was your number one priority. I also went on a service trip to Kentucky to work with the Christian Appalachian Project in honor of you and all my loved ones who have passed away because you all were people who served others with love. We were doing home repair. And oh my gosh that trip was probably the best thing I did this past summer. I learned and experienced so much. I know if you were here today we would’ve gotten together to discuss it over coffee and donuts. I am so grateful to God for giving me that opportunity. I have no idea what 2023 holds (maybe you do….I don’t know how that works), but I hope that each day I do something that makes you proud.

This letter is getting long, so I’ll conclude with some things that I always want you to know.

I celebrate because you lived.
I still grieve because you died.
I am still impacted by your love and kindness.
I will always remember you.
I wish you were here.
I love you still.

Love,

Dear George,

You were meant to be a part of our family. After losing the dog that we had since I was in Kindergarten my mom claimed we weren’t getting another dog. But my dad convinced her to open her heart up again, and this time all roads lead to you….literally. You traveled from Georgia to Maine as a puppy. At the shelter, my parents observed how you interacted with a young girl, how you played with her, yet you were so gentle too. That’s the moment they fell in love with you and knew that they wanted to take you home. I can’t help but believe that our old dog, Lucky, had pulled some strings and guided us to you.

At first when we took you home you were timid, but slowly your sweet, sensitive, silly personality began to show through. You quickly became my companion. Every errand, every ride, everywhere I went you were by my side. Your little wet nose on my face was the first thing I felt at 6am on Saturday morning as you demanded that I get up so that you could get your cuddles in and then go back to bed, and your solid body against my leg was the last thing I felt at night before I fell asleep.

Life with you is filled with more laughter, love, and epic cuddle sessions. You give me a reason to get out of the bed in the morning. While you can’t talk, your actions communicate so much to me. Your cuddles communicate your unconditional love, your paw resting delicately on my lap and your solid body against my leg at night make me feel safe and secure. You greeting me at the door makes me feel welcome. You showing me your belly for the thousandth belly rub of the day helps me to know that you trust me. You putting your nose under my armpit or on my shoulder as if giving me a hug. You have me (and each member of our family) wrapped around your paw. We love you so much and are so grateful to have you as a part of our family.

Love,

Tonight’s extended meeting with Joel Cox was very informative to what it takes to become someone who wants to enter the world of media. I appreciate Joel’s realistic mindset and personality towards his experiences of interviewing talent in order to find good people with great values. I was thankful to ask Joel a question regarding the amount of people in the industry that throw journalistic integrity to the side to gain viewership and followers for economic gains. His responses validated my thoughts that going about the business the right way by showing respect and being yourself has even more value than just a salary. How your peers view you is so important as there are enough great people in the industry that will notice how you’ve handled yourself with professionalism and treated people with kindness. There are several ways to climb the ladder and I’d like to thank you Joel for letting me know that if you do things the right way then you can still get to where you want to be without shortcuts. His conversation tonight only has me more intrigued about the industry than ever but most importantly is how can I live my purpose in life and reach the most amount of people through love, truth and kindness in my lifetime.

I just wanted to say that while part of tonight’s discussion was about New Year’s resolutions I heard many good points and ideas by our professional guests in the mental health field. I wanted to speak in depth more about goal setting and making plans for your own personal improvements. I agree than having a goal with a plan in place is the way to go however its the contingency plan that is the insurance policy for if you fail or temporarily lose focus. Here’s my advice. If you decide to broadcast it to the world through social media have one person that you can absolutely count on to kick you in your ass for when you lose your way. You’re going to need them. Pick the person you trust most to tell you what you need to hear not what you want to hear. We all have that someone that will keep it real with us. Let’s face it, these resolutions that our now goals with a plan you probably already tried them before right? How did you do? If you have more than one thing on your list you know you have some returning Jeopardy champions that beat you last time don’t you? Damn right you do and you’re not alone. It will be challenging as hell because if it were easy then you wouldn’t have waited until January 1st now would you? Hell no you would’ve of!

So what do we do now? We’ve got our goal, we’ve got our plan, we’ve got our backup motivational ass kicking truth teller ready to help hold you accountable. Now what? Now we ready our mindset. We believe in ourselves. We rid our minds and bodies of all the negativity junk food that is out there in the world and on social media for our ears and eyes to absorb. You surround yourself with good people. Start becoming the person you expect to be not who you want to be. A lot of people want and how does that usually go? Sounds like the path of least resistance where you hope to get lucky to hit your goal. That’s why someone’s response to your want is usually, “good luck with that” followed by an eye roll. I think you see my point. If you want to be difference choose different. If you expect that change then you must make change. If you back down that same road without change you’ll get what you’ve always gotten. that’s not enough. Not this time!

These are my words and my letter to you our community here at The Unsealed. This community is going to grow and one of the main reasons is because us as members are going to grow too as individuals and as a community. If you want special then let’s be special. We going to come in here week after week writing letters or interacting in the meetings and say how you are now better equipped to handles the situations that will be presented to us in 2023 because our mindsets became more positive, more focused so we achieved more goals which led to my increased confidence to overcome the obstacles put in front of me. I did this because I believed. I survived because when i needed it someone else believed in me to because they saw the changes I made in my life. It’s all there for us if we expect it to become our own realities.

Together we can become stronger both physically and mentally. We can and will become a better version of ourselves. The changes you’re going to make can and will become permanent. Lock in the positive mindset have your go to for support and be the amazing person your meant to be and share your talented gifts with the world. Life is short so not only get the most out of it but give to other’s lives as well. That’s what a community is meant to do.

Forget the New Year’s resolutions and create and solidify the New Me resolutions! The New Me doesn’t require a date, time or year. Your commitment to the New Me starts now! Go get it and remember to love and forgive yourself in the process. Share your success.

From the bottom of my heart

Thank you

I wanted to take some time to share my thoughts on this community. In 2020 Lauren reached out to me and talked about her business and what it represented. I immediately could feel that she’s taking a chance by leaving sportscasting but she’s found her purpose and motivation for a much greater cause. I felt that she was very brave to 1) tell her own very personal story of overcoming adversity but 2) to turn something from an idea into a business that people will buy in on. She went all in. She bet on herself. She puts in countless hours of effort towards making sure that her idea, her creation, her purpose is stainable long term. Why? Because a business needs to be financial successful? Sure. But that’s true for any business to survive and grow. I personally believe in fact I know this and know this for sure and that’s because this community that was once an idea that was hers is now a reality for all of us. I believe the biggest driver of that is because she genuinely cares for people, their lives, and protecting their stories of meaningful life events. We as members put our trust in her by sharing what we’ve experienced and how we’ve adjusted so she can share this with all of you. How great is this opportunity? To help others through what we’ve learned. Is that a new concept, no but what separates Lauren and this Unsealed community is how we go about respecting each other during this experience. It takes a lot for many people to just freely open up about their troubling past, your current challenging situation or what your afraid of about your future. We’re also having these conversations with what started as complete strangers. Maybe that makes it easier for each of us. It is in fact that safe space that’s needed. Non judgmental. Just freely speaking with a reason for positivity to be the result behind the end of every sentence. Whether your writing letters and joining us in the weekly meetings of a writing workshop or with a guest there’s always something to gain that can affect your life in a way where you carry that positivity out into the world. Kindness is a great thing to share, always. I’ve never once left a meeting where I didn’t feel better about what i learned and how i could apply that back into the world. That is purpose. That is value. We should all value our time we spend doing whatever it is that is consuming our attention at that moment. We can’t get it back so we might as well enjoy it.

To all the members that I’ve had the pleasure to get to know through our meetings to writing letters and giving feedback to messaging on other platforms I want to say thank you. I hope that in some way that our interaction has had meaning to you to help you get through this thing called life. We’re all broken people learning from each other to teach each other how we can heal one another and to fix ourselves to become the best version that we want to be. We heard so many great stories from our guests/ members on how they’ve overcame what was put in front of them. Some have to battle each and every day to stay on top of their adversity. That teaches us to never give up. Our bodies our designed to fail but our spirits are not. Even when the energy doesn’t seem to be there we rely on one another to be recharged, to be sparked by the spirit of someone else. That is humanity at its peak. At its finest being there for one another. That’s what this Unsealed community means to me.

For new members during this next calendar I say welcome. You’ve come to an amazing place. We’re glad your here and I believe you’re here for a reason. There’s so much to gain by just coming in and absorbing the knowledge from the letters, the speeches from the guests even if you’re just a spectator that’s ok. That was me when I first signed up. What I learned though in time was that I had too much to offer than to just sit back. I was encouraged to participate and I’m so thankful I did. I had too much love to not be giving back to this group. There’s so many special people in here with a variety of talents that I want them to maximize their gifts to this world. Genuinely caring is my gift. It’s not unique but I’m so glad it’s not because I know others have this gift too. This community and its creator Lauren will help bring that out of you if you let it happen. Thank you for your trust. I look forward to getting to know you and your story.

As we all face our challenges let’s remember to stick together. Support each other. There’s no boos and only cheers. If you have negative thoughts have a short memory of them and move on. Be accountable through self accountability first. It’ll change your life. Most importantly if you need my help, just ask. It’s why I love this community so much. My door will always be open to my Unsealed family because you’ve helped me more than you know.

Thank you

This was the morning that my mother’s body finally gave out from battling multiple forms of cancer since her diagnosis. Cancer never took her smile, sense of humor or her positive attitude even while battling this disease at the same time as my 16 year old sister from 1996 until my mom’s passing in 97. Having my sister in my life made figuring out how to adapt to life without being her son a less challenging journey. I had hoped we’d have more time to figure this out together but unfortunately my sister’s cancer journey was leading her closer to being with my mom again instead of the path I was learning to navigate. God’s plan was greater than ours when my sister passed from her battle in April of 2000. What I’ve learned over the years since then is that so many of us with our families, friends, and other loved ones have had their own unique stories of how this disease has altered their lives. I’m always very deeply touched when I hear the success stories of those who are or have battled their own battles and have came out the other side as survivors! Hearing that gives me hope for the present and future. As millions of dollars continue to go into cancer research for treatments I pray for a cure for all cancers in my lifetime. What I feel is as important if not more is that I want much more effort to be done to find the actual causes to this disease especially for what is approved by the FDA for what’s in the food we eat and what we drink. I feel this would be a major step forward in minimizing the amount of causes by eliminating some of their sources to begin with. All I wish is that we’d attack the cause as much as we do the cure. If this would save even one more person It’d be worth it.

I’m thankful to choose to celebrate my mom’s life today as I have in many year’s past. I spent 23 years with her influencing my life by being here and now 25 years remembering her memories and lessons that she taught me. I’ve adjusted away from grief years ago because it’s better for your mental health to let it go if you’re ready too. Choose to be happy because that’s what time was like with them so why would they want me to be any different without them? I’d hope if you’ve read this far down that the sharing of this story can help you move past your own loss. At some point you have to be willing to put the heavy weight of grief down behind you and move forward. I think the greatest gift we can give the one’s we’ve lost is to honor them with appreciation of our own lives that we’re blessed to wake up with today. Our reason to exist today is to simply make a positive impact on each other’s lives in community. If you can do that very thing then we are truly getting value out of our purpose for living. With that being said, have fun doing it!

As we are here at the US Open Finals weekend, I can’t help but see the similarities of the path through the bracket as it pertains to life in general. When you are born into this world where you land isn’t up to you. You could be seeded anywhere in life. Few are placed in top seeded environments while some others do get seeded but they’re somewhere in the middle while the vast majority of us go unseeded but you’re still in the game of life. Where we start in life can predetermine our odds but with that comes no guarantees that success is in your future. Each day can be a match where your expectations and the expectations of others might feel like today should be very successful with limited challenges to face. There are days where everything does work out for you and easy feels like a great day. Your next day may be projected the same way but you’re presented with unexpected roadblocks where you’re just not on point and life feels like you should be in play but your best efforts are landing out of bounds. Yet somehow you made it through even though in your mind you know your day should’ve felt like a walk over. Then as you advance on there’s a very significant test staring you right in your face and you know the night before you must be prepared or you may not win the day. The day is now here and you wake up ready to go full of confidence. I got this. I can do it. I believe in myself and my abilities. I’m going to win. Nothing and no one’s going to stop me from achieving my goal today. My clothes fit just right and look great. My shoe game is on point. My racquet grip is perfectly wrapped. Let’s play! Your start to this match is holding serve like the champion you are. Then you play on only to have your opponent give you that resistance. You planned for it. Here we go except this challenge turns out to bigger, faster and stronger than expected and now you find yourself down 2 sets. You battle back. The match is tied and momentum is behind you. You’ve fought to be points away from winning your game, your set, your match, your championship, your day but so has your opponent. You’re right where you want to be, where you expected to be and you can see the trophy being placed in your hands. Unfortunately, life hits you with an immediate back hand. You’re stunned. It’s now set point for your opposition. How can I recover? Oh, wait they’re ready to serve. I’m not ready and here comes the ball. I swing and…..
How do you want this match to end? An ending that you hit the return on the serve and you won the point? You battled back. YOU WON THE CHAMPIONSHIP!!! What if they hit an ace and now the match is over. They outlasted you best effort. THEY won the championship!

The point of my story is no matter where your seeded in life the journey is ultimately yours. You control the things you can control and let go of the things you can’t. Learn from your lessons that the game of life presents to you every day no matter if the path seems smooth or if the struggle is real. Everybody has a player’s box to looks towards for support through passion, inspiration, and the greatest support of all, Love. Some player’s boxes are bigger than others with all different members representing family, friends, and coaches. They’re behind you win or lose because they see all the work you put in and how much you care for your success, your sport, and for your loved ones but today maybe it wasn’t enough to declare victory on a scoreboard but you won your match in the game of life. Do you know why? Because while your journey started with a player’s box adding people along the way your daily performance has now established a following where your box now fits in a stadium. Within that stadium you now have an extension of your support system called fans. Fans of you because they too see a light within you that they want to be a part of even if it’s from a distance farther away than the ones closest to you. This is the part where I tie in the very platform to where this stadium stands and that’s The Unsealed. This community of fans are sitting in those very seats just outside your player’s box. We’re here in attendance to cheer you on through the ups and downs of your point, your set, your match of life. When you’ve fell to the court whether it be in defeat or in celebration, you’ll feel the energy of positive support here. There are no stories that can’t be told. There are no losers, only champions. Alone doesn’t exist here if you allow acceptance into your heart, mind and spirit. The tournament director, she’s very accommodating. No matter what round of your tournament you’re in there’s an open bracket for you and your seeding doesn’t matter. The tournament invites are unlimited and so is the seating. I feel I can speak for everyone and say that she can serve and volley kindness with anyone.

As champions prepare to get crowned just remember there’s great stories to be told on both sides of the net. One trophy won’t define an entire lifetime but will be one of their most memorable days of their life. Treat people like the champions that they are. Like no scoreboard exists. We all can drop a game or a set but we also can be that fan in the seats giving a standing ovation. Let’s root for each other.

If you need me, I’ll be there to meet you at the net to shake your hand.
Have a great match today everyone!

Your fan,

To my younger, I wish I could go back in time and live those childhood moments again. As I got older I realized that those moments cannot be done again, but at the end of the day I lived those moments and had a lot of fun and experienced a lot of things. If I could go back and name a time that I really enjoyed it would be going to the Browns training camps every summer with my uncle and cousins. Being able to watch the Browns practice in Berea was one of the best things that I have ever done when I was younger. As I got older, I started to cherish everything about my childhood and would never trade it for anything. Last but not least, to the younger me experience as much as you can and have fun.

For anyone that’s visited Niagara Falls for the 1st time I’m sure it left a lasting impression on your life of travel. We use the term awesome often in many daily comments but Niagara Falls has the ultimate hold my beer stance. This was my 4th visit to the Falls ( 2 on the Canadian side, 2 on the New York side) and I can tell you this one was the most meaningful. It was different because this was the 1st trip for my 3 daughters to experience the beauty and the power of the Falls but that’s not what sets this visit apart from the other 3.

This week Lauren, I know your topic of conversation for your weekly meeting was regarding mental health and your feelings of feeling nervous being out in recent crowds of people. As you were conducting your weekly meeting I was literally in one of those crowds. I’m here to tell you and anyone that reads this that you should have confidence in our society and the joys we all can bring each other. There’s 2 things that stood out to me during our visit.

1) Diversity

It was so special to me to see the amount of different nationalities and language barriers that were interacting and such a positive manner. From taking pictures of each other’s families so everyone can get into the picture to general common courtesy of waiting in lines, elevators or museum stores. I’d say I heard more languages other than English during the length of are visit and even though I didn’t understand it one thing that’s translate to all of us is a simple smile. I’ve been to NYC but that visit didn’t impact me the same way this one did.

2) Police presence

With the amount of tragic events that get covered by the media and recently in near by Buffalo you’d think there’d be a tight security presence in such a popular tourist spot visited by the world at and near the border. I can tell you during our 3 days there when we were reflecting back on the last night we could remember even seeing a police officer. Yes we saw park personnel and security inside the casino but other than that we didn’t notice any police at all.

The social interactions of all the different groups of people from all around the world was such a positive experience for me and I hope the other families felt the same way. Maybe the energy that radiates from the water provides a power of positivity that’s next level. Maybe it was getting baptized by the Falls at the Cave of the Winds or on the Maid of the Mist with hundreds of my new closest friends or what but I just want everyone to know to get out there and have confidence that life is about community. If we were supposed to be alone then we would’ve been born to this planet one life at a time. We were meant to be together. Life is worth its risks and if you focus on its joys instead of its worries then you’re truly living free which is great for your physical and mental health.

All my best to all of yours,

Jamie Ellifritz