Power of We - online support

Today is Blog Action Day 2012. The topic this year is the "Power of We". This reminds me of the commercial which shows the young girl singing the Star Spangled Banner and forgets the words. Then the audience starts singing with her and giving her the words. That is the Power of We.

We can do things together. What are some of the things that happen we people act together: Candidates get elected and laws get created. But also chat rooms and message boards allow us to join together and help each other.

Since being diagnosed with cancer a second time, I have learned about the support I can get by finding and bonding with people who are going through a similar diagnosis. Actually I first found out about message boards when I had a hysterectomy in 2005 and found hystersisters.org which provides great support and information for those having the surgery. I can't tell you how many people I have referred to that site since.

For breast cancer there are many message boards out there. One of the best ones is on breastcancer.org. The Komen website used to have some very active message boards but managed to lose many participants through poor handling on their end - including software updates, poor moderation, and lack of tech support.

For thyroid cancer,  I have found that the Thyroid Cancer Survivor's Association's message boards provide no end of support as well.

Now when I have a new ailment, I go to find the message boards that will help me.

These are all examples of how people coming together and sharing their knowledge and experiences helps others. This is what happens when people work together.

Today is blog action day

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I had completely forgotten about it. Blog action day is held annually on October 15. This year the cause is water. Water is a problem in many parts of the world. Not just in 3rd world countries but right here in the US. Not everyone has easy access to drinking water even though the country is one of the most advanced in the world.

This is a basic need that we must deal with. What about the dam that broke and threatens the Danube? That is just one of the most recent events in a long string of them. Save water. Don't pollute water. Don't over fertilize so nutrients wash into the local water supply. We can all help.

Blog Action Day - Climate Change

Today is Blog Action Day (www.blogactionday.org) where bloggers around the world were asked to raise awareness about climate change. I participated last year where the topic was poverty so when I was reminded about it this year (they send out reminders so we don't have to remember - very helpful for us spaceshots with chemo brain) I was quick to reply yes. I wasn't really sure about what I would write but thought I would figure it out sooner or later. Well, it was later.

Yesterday they reminded me again and I decided it was time to figure out what to write. I couldn't think of anything. I am not a scientist or economist who can make all sorts of predictions or write authoritatively about anything hard core. Nor do I read enough about it to really be that educated. I know the polar bears are losing their ice floes and I know the northern passage has opened so cruise ships are showing up in northern Alaska. But I don't know about ozone holes and rising sea levels and their impact on the world economies and peoples and that sort of stuff.

Last night, while my back hurt and prevented me from sleeping, I started thinking about it. My thoughts on climate change awareness are that its not about us, meaning those of us who are here now, its about them, meaning the future generations. We want them to have a nice green planet to live in. We are all urged to do our share to protect the environment and reduce emissions - don't litter, recycle, shut off idling vehicles, walk to your errands and school - and we are getting better at it. There is still room for improvement as we aren't there yet but the point is we are trying.

Last year, in the midst of some medical issue, I ended up at the hospital WITHOUT A BOOK TO READ and was in a magazine free area. This is a very traumatic situation and happened to me once before. (Usually I bring something to read because it magically prevents long wait times.) In both cases when I was bookless, I asked the staff if they had any magazines I could borrow. Both times, I was provided with old copies of National Geographic. The one I was given last year was from the 1980's and talked about climate change and global warming and was full of cool pictures and dire warnings. I was struck by how much was predicted actually had happened - even with my uneducated brain. It didn't go away in the 20 years, the ice caps are melting, storms are worse, global temperatures are rising, etc.

So I guess my point is if they were mostly right 20 years ago, they are probably mostly right now and we should pay attention to the warnings and do our part to help out as much as we can. We want to leave a nice green planet to future generations.