A Note from the President

 As I write this column, the stock market is acting like a runaway roller coaster with no end of the ride in sight. Americans are about to elect a new President, and we have no idea what new policies he will bring to Washington with him. Gasoline prices and supplies have us wondering if we’re going to have enough fuel to scurry around and if we will be able to afford it. There will be no definitive answers to these concerns anytime soon.

 I received countless blessings during my formative years. (I’m pretty sure those years haven’t ended yet!) If I had to catalog my cherished gifts, I would count the joy of having an “old soul” as my most favorite. I guess my disposition comes from being raised in a conservative, traditional family which at any given moment can break in to a verse of “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” or “Amazing Grace” depending on the situation. We are a happy and hysterical bunch! We take an “all hands on deck” approach to life. We love openly, speak even more openly, and agree to disagree regularly.

 With my roots so deep in such family soil, I truly believe these “uncertain times” in which we live are no different from those of the generations before us. Life is always uncertain and the only thing constant is change! Due to my lack of chronological years I am not wise in many ways. However, the lessons I have learned about life I only care to learn once!

 I want to share with you one of the most important lessons I have been taught thus far on my journey. In my life, I have experienced the destruction and ravenous ways a terminal illness can change a family financially and spiritually. This is a portion of my childhood I rarely reflect on. It was a sweet time of life, but a hard one to navigate. This has been brought back to the forefront of my mind this week by uncertain news about a dear friend. When I called to give my best wishes, he said, “I love you too. I know that is why you called. I love your momma.” It was a slice of life.

 I am a big believer in living today for today. Be happy today, be mad today, be honest today, and be friendly to those you meet. A kind word goes a long way and you never know how a person’s life may have changed just yesterday.

 Change is inevitable, and if one more politician uses the word as a mantra, I will scream! Be original! Life and change take care of themselves. I’m ready for a change. I should be ashamed to say it, but the brand of change I am after has not one iota to do with politics, the economy, or gas shortages. Life is ebb and flow, I cannot change those issues. The circumstances that surround us have to grow dim every now and then. How else could we enjoy the sunshine?

 Junior Leaguers, I challenge you to not worry about change, but concentrate on infusing it! Become an agent of change. You all inspire me to be a good leader, and make you proud of the choice you have made. Look at one another. We are spectacular! JLAC is comprised of beautiful and intellectual women. We are business owners, teachers, mothers, daughters, and someone’s best friend. We have the ability to be an inspiration by just being. Move on it ladies!! We don’t want this community to wonder what Junior League does. We want everyone to see what we do, to be inspired by it, and, yes I have to say it, to be changed by it. We have had a great start to the year. Dawn Smith Jordan was an excellent speaker for the Diamonds and Ice luncheon. Everyone who attended was touched by this event. Santa is preparing to be with us soon! I look forward to stirring our momentum in positive ways and defining “change” with a JLAC logo stamped firmly upon it! We can and will lead!