Post Secret (Part 3)/ Subway® wants kids to Never Miss Lunch

Nov. 1, 2015:

"It's always worth it.  Starting meds is the most empowering thing I have ever done."

"I feel stupid for choosing teaching as a career."

My opinion: You can always change careers.

"To all the people who said I was throwing my life away to pursue love, my heart was right, just like I knew it would be."

A picture of Nashville: "I believed in a city to make my dreams come true, instead of believing in myself."

"My job has taken me from young, vital, creative Elvis to old, fat, sickly dying on a toilet Elvis.  Thank you, thank you very much.  I'm quitting.  Get out while you still can."

[My friends on facebook and reddit helped with the translations.]

In the name of living, I spared my youth, I gave up from all, I lost myself into you in the name of living, being with you in every second is the true meaning of the living.

First line in Yellow font is in Persian calligraphy: My youth was wasted away in pursuit of sustenance.

 Next lines: I washed my hands from all aspects of life and lost myself in you. The true meaning of life was then defined in your companionship during every breath I take.

I gave my heart to you for all of my life in the name of life. Having been with you gives every breath meaning.

It’s a Hare Krishna recruitment thing, in a Persian language. Man, I’ll bet it’s dangerous to try to convert anyone in Iran, last time I checked they do NOT take that sort of thing

I love all these different translations. They may be different but they’re all beautiful.

"My birthday present to my mom, is deciding not to tell her I was raped."

Email:

Dear Frank,

I am the girl who was raped and mailed you this secret.

When I was raped I drew a line in the sand and suddenly every relationship I had was redefined by whether or not I could share my secret with them. I either took the risk and told my story or chose to always wear a mask. But when is the right time to tell your mother the worst news she’s ever heard? Could I handle the reactions of my religious parents or would it destroy me even more?

Almost a year went by when I finally broke down and told my mom. I was overwhelmed by the love and support I received.  “Would we be upset with you if someone broke into your house?” I was free. I was free to finally be myself and I used this new found support to move forward with pressing charges through my university. My rapist was expelled.

I understand that not everyone will receive the same grace or justice that I did. But I also understand the weight of the secret. I understand living the “I’m totally ok” lie. So I hope someone will redraw their line in the sand. I hope they will let one more person in to share the burden. It may make all the difference.
With love…

"I'll never find someone to love if I don't go out and socialize."

Hello Frank!

This is my secret, or it used to be. I just wanted to let you know that this December I will be celebrating my 1-year wedding anniversary! I met my husband online through OKCupid, and we both hate going out to socialize. We enjoy spending our time together alone at home being geeks. We totally adore each other and don’t feel the need to fake social interactions with the general public just for the sake of being social. A perfect match!

Thanks for sharing my secret, and I hope I can give hope to others who feel lost and unable to find love because being social is too hard for them. They’re not alone, love is out there also afraid to go out and socialize!

Nov. 16, 2016:

—Email—

Dear Stranger Who Left Me A Kind Letter-

I’ve been going through a rough patch recently and every time I think it can’t get worse, it does.

Today was one of those days. I drove to Barnes and Noble and thought since I don’t have anyone to go to why not get a notebook to write all this down in. I really had never felt so alone. I cried in my car contemplating how my life got to this point then pulled myself together and went into Barnes and Noble. As I went to pay I realized I left my wallet in my car. I ran back out and came back to this note.

This made me cry even more and as I am writing you this email I am crying, but it’s a good type of cry. This person was like a light. A complete stranger made me not feel so alone anymore and even though I have never been very religious I felt really comforted knowing someone was praying for me. I wish I could hug this person and thank them. I can only hope they read this and know how grateful I am and how much this did for me. I put your note in my wallet so anytime I am sad I can read it and know there are good people in this world. Your 20 dollars went to my new notebook, hopefully that will help me as much as you did today.

—Email—

Frank,You ran my secret about proposing at Rockefeller Center today. I just wanted you to know that she did say yes, and we’ve been married for 6 years now! Also, I slipped and fell while trying to get down on one knee. Doing that on ice is harded than you’d think.

Dec. 6, 2015:

A picture of The Wizard of Oz: "People tell me my travels brave.

But I'm really just running away

Which is the most cowardly"

"Travelling solo

helped me reclaim

my confidence

and

realize

you're never really alone

if you don't want to be."

"Secrets are the currency of intimacy."

"I think it's funny how you would thought I wouldn't tell anyone about you...

My family couldn't be more proud of me turning you in."

"I wish my superpower was helping people love and forgive themselves

...starting with her."

A picture of Target application: "The only good thing about this job is that it made

me realize I want to do something MEANINGFUL."

"I became a teacher because I didn't think I was smart enough to do anything else...

Now I'm doing it so kids know they are smart enough!

Frank, in writing down and thinking about this secret, I realized the 2nd 1/2 of it which will

change my life forever." -Wisconsin"

Dec. 12, 2015: "If I could change and not be gay I'd do it for you son.  But thanks for loving me anyway- Dad."

Dec. 26, 2015: "Sometimes I go shopping at Wal-Mart just so I'm not alone."

Feb. 21, 2016:

—-email—–

Dear Frank,
I’ve been following PostSecret for the last 9 years. I went to a live PostSecret event at a bookstore during my freshman year of college and managed to snag the last copy of your first book.

I’ve bookmarked hundreds of the posted cards over the years and somehow managed to keep them all over the multitude of computers and cell phones and browsers that I’ve had. Today I decided to dust them all off take a look at what I’d collected. WOW. None of them have dates listed in the URLs, but I can pinpoint when they were posted based on what was going on in my life. It was like looking at an emotional diary of my adult life, written entirely by other people and curated by myself.

Thank you for giving me such a poetic timeline.

Mar. 27, 2016:

—Email—

Frank,
My father, who I was very close to, passed away when I was 21 very suddenly and unexpectedly. 2 years later I met the man of dreams and could not imagine getting married without my dad there.

To this day, whenever anyone asks me who walked me down the aisle the true and honest answer is: “My dad did”.

Maybe someone else out there will find this to be a small comfort during the sadness of not having their dad.

Apr. 10, 2016:

—email—

The day I decided I was done with life came after a lot of thought. I came home from work, a 14hr day, took my big old mutt for a jog, got him dinner and prepared to take my pills.

Well that beautiful big old mutt dragged my fire department gear bag over and sat down at my feet waiting. It was my volunteer fire departments training night. And he knew he got to come with me and hangout at the station. 

That night I was one of 3 fire fighters, the only female, to receive recognition for our skills and knowledge during a challenging rescue call.

My week:

Christmas parties:

Sat. Dec. 7, 2019 Robertson- Wesley United Christmas dinner: I called them and they said that it's for anybody and not just homeless people.  I went there.  I had the staple of 2 pieces of roast beef, 3 potatoes, a bun, and the dessert is a gingerbread cake and vanilla ice cream.  The church people served it to us.

I didn't get veggies or cookies.

Fri. Dec. 13, 2019 Family Game night: I go to the Centre of Spiritual Living and it was Christmas- themed decorations.  I ate chili and tortilla chips with salsa, guacamole, and hummus.

We played a game of "Game of Things" where we write down our answers to questions like:

 "Things to make school more interesting."

Then we each take a turn to guess who said what and then we get a point.  People said:

-less homework

-pop in the water fountains

-dance classes (that was me)

https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/toys/game-of-things-/093514277044-item.html?gclsrc=aw.ds&gclid=Cj0KCQiA89zvBRDoARIsAOIePbB2IclOwkeIlPlLj4dz5THA_EAt1eXP8bWAipus17vWR-M-HFvXkc0aAixFEALw_wcB&ds_rl=1254699%2C1254699%2C1254699&s_campaign=goo-Performance_AlwaysOn_Shopping_RLSA_EN

Dec. 19, 2019 "A deputy burglarized grieving families’ homes during funerals, officials say. Then her co-workers recognized her": 

More than a year later, detectives with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office would link the crime to one of their own deputies. Authorities say that Janelle Gericke, who worked as a corrections officer at the Jefferson County Jail until July, scoured obituaries for funeral times and targeted the homes of grieving family members while they were attending memorial services.  

But her colleagues began spotting her as she staked out potential victims, and, on Tuesday, the 29-year-old was charged with felony burglary.  

A criminal complaint from the Wisconsin Department of Justice lists seven instances between February 2018 and June 2019 where the former deputy either successfully broke into a stranger’s home, or was spotted lurking outside houses that she had reason to believe would be empty. If her calculations turned out to be wrong, state investigators say, Gericke would quickly make up a story. 

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/a-deputy-burglarized-grieving-families-homes-during-funerals-officials-say-then-her-co-workers-recognized-her/ar-BBY9Yif?ocid=spartanntp

My opinion: That's terrible to burglarize whom you know is a grieving family.  To make it worse, it's a deputy who is supposed to be enforcing the law.


Subway® wants kids to Never Miss Lunch:

The Subway® Never Miss Lunch TM program is our commitment to providing children in communities just like yours access to wholesome lunches so they can reach their full potential.

When school ends, so do many community-based nutrition programs. That’s why, from now on, we’re teaming up with Food Banks Canada’s After The Bell program to provide nutritious meals to children during summer break.

https://www.subway.com/en-CA/AboutUs/NeverMissLunch

Good deed: I was waiting for the bus at City Centre mall, and this white guy in his 30s and a cane asked if he could get some change for a coffee.  I gave him 1 of my free McDonald's card (buy 7 coffees) and get 1 free.

He thanked me.  I walk on the street and wait for the bus, and I see a McDonald's coffee cup and the sticker is on it.  I always stick them on the card.

James Clear: I was going through my old links and I found this article I book marked:

James Clear is the founder of PassivePanda.com and the creator of The Remora Method, a step-by-step system for boosting your income by $500 per week.

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/10-money-lessons-billionaires-134554544.html

Here is his new website: 

Thanks for reading. You helped save a life.

Whenever you buy one of my books, join the Habits Academy, or otherwise contribute to my work, 5 percent of the profits are donated to the Against Malaria Foundation (AMF).

With each donation, AMF distributes nets to protect children, pregnant mothers, and families from mosquitos carrying malaria. It is one of the most cost-effective ways to extend life and fulfills my bigger mission to spread healthy habits and help others realize their full potential

https://jamesclear.com/passive-panda

Dec. 20, 2019 Christmas presents: In my family we don't exchange gifts, but I got a few from my boss M at the 2nd restaurant job.  She gave the workers these:

1. A box of Purdy chocolates (15 pieces in them).

2. Poinsettia flowers.  My mom and grandma put them on the fireplace.

3. A Christmas card and McDonald's coupon for a free entrée (her son works there).

4. Some handmade soaps that she made.

My co-worker An gave me a Christmas card.