This page was last modified August 14, 2006.
This is my space to "let my hair down". So please excuse the mess, and please don't mind me if I take my shoes off and get comfortable. I thought you might like to know a bit about who I am and why I've spent so much time putting this site together--and why I spend so much time online at all... Contrary to public opinion, I'm not really a technophile. I just use technology as a tool, and I've needed to become a little above average in using it in order to accomplish what I need to get done.
First the baby and childhood pictures... I like to show off as much as anyone else... Besides, these are important for understanding who I am and why I do what I do.
Oh, that's a picture of me at 2-1/2 weeks old. I was pretty small ... a pound and 14 ounces, to be exact. That picture was taken on June 12--I wasn't supposed to have been born until sometime in August.
Premature babies often have health problems which result from exposure to the environment at a time when their bodies are not developed to handle it. I have an eye condition which is common in babies who weigh less than two and a half pounds at birth. The condition was diagnosed a couple of months after I came home and resulted in a severe visual impairment. During my early childhood, my parents did lots of things to make sure that I could "see" what was around me, like encouraging me to touch this water pump.
Blindness hasn't stopped me from doing most things--even a few things the rest of my family wouldn't dream about. ... Sometimes I forget to tell my parents about something I've done. I brought this picture home from the school for the blind, where I had participated in a ropes course during the summer after my 14th birthday. Mom was quite surprised. I can't remember if I told her we also went rock climbing. Oops! Better tell her before she sees this page!
When I say that blindness hasn't stopped me, what I mean is that it is really a background detail that I sometimes need to work with. I actually become uncomfortable when people want to write about how I overcome it, etc. I'd prefer to talk about other things--like my love of animals--which play much more central roles in my life.
These are some of the animals who have been in my life at different times while I built this site. The grey tabby, calico cat, and one black Lab are now in kitty and dog heaven. The other black Lab now has a special new home. The black cat is still with me and has been joined by other animals. You can read more about them on the dog page and cat page respectively. Please do read about them... My dogs have very special jobs as guides, and they go most places with me. My cats are primarily emotional comfort providers; but if you'll search the 3kitties blog (down at the bottom of the page) for posts about cats you'll find some rather interesting things out about them.
I have loved books since I was a little girl. Dad continued reading to me almost every day until I was in the sixth or seventh grade. Our reading times are some of my favorite memories.
I enjoy many kinds of music. Not only do I enjoy listening, but I also enjoy writing it. I have begun work on a CD entitled I Believe, which features 13 original songs. To hear some samples, visit my music page.
When I first went to college, I was torn between majoring in education of the visually impaired and Christian ministried with a music business minor. I originally planned to teach children who are visually impaired, but several things have led me to choose another career. I still love children and have a special place in my heart and life for visually impaired children. I am active on several email lists for parents of blind children, and I was also employed part-time as a child care provider at the church I attended from 1999-2002.
It was during my later college years that I taught myself HTML in order to create a web site. I had begun assisting friends to find information on the Web, and at that time the Web was still fairly small and useful information was still rare. I was good at sorting through pages and finding information that was most relevant and throwing out what was useless or repetitive; so I created a page to serve as a focal point for information about epilepsy. At first, the page was nothing more than a collection of links. The HTML was incorrect technically, but it did display. Over time, I learned that adding content was a good idea and would keep me in the top of the search engines; and over the years the site has grown until it needed its own domain name. Growingstrong.org came about because my site was a ministry to people who often felt weak, to give them something that would help them develop strength.
More recently, I have discovered the joy of online journaling. I can't really say that I am blogging--blogging seems to be viewed in more of a professional light than journaling is; and I am not ashamed to say that I am a journaler--and I do it at LiveJournal, complete with voice posts. My "LJ" began as a way to allow people a glimpse into the daily life of a blind person over time. I have been keeping a journal since 1984; and while much of it must remain private due to its intensely personal nature, there is also much that is appropriate for posting, perhaps with a bit of editing here and there.
I have also started a second journal which is focused specifically on my faith and my experiences beginning from the time of my decision to initiate the process of applying to the Master of Divinity program at Anderson University to study pastoral counseling. This journal includes primarily reflections and notes.
Even while they are online, my journals are mostly for my own personal growth. However, putting them online has provided me some fascinating networking opportunities. I have learned that (as I suspected) I am not alone in my experiences; and (as I have desired) my experiences have been available as encouragement to others. I've learned a lot of lessons along the way--some very difficult--about communication and when to stay silent about certain issues. But I would not trade the experiences for anything. I am a better communicator for the experiences.
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