DO NOT FORGET THIS

I dont care what you weigh,

Only that you heart is heavy with love.

I dont care where you live,

We're both on earth together, and that's all that matters to me.

I dont care what you drive,

I only care that you are driven by your bliss.

I dont care about your social circles,

I only care that you take me just the way that I am.

I dont care what color you are,

I care only that you understand that inside, we are the SAME.

I dont care what religion you practice,

I only care that you practice what you preach.

I dont care where you live,

I only care that you are safe, warm and loved.

I dont care who you know,

I only care that you know me, and take me as I am.

I dont care about your wealth,

I only care that you are rich with Self Worth.

I dont care about your education, or lack there-of...

I only care that you enjoy your life experience...this IS your higher education.

I dont care where you come from,

I care only that you understand that we are all from the same place.

I dont care what you did before,

I care only about the woman that you are right now, today.

I dont care if you understand.

I care only that you understand that I love you anyway.

~Elle Febbo

But I am only One...

Yep, I am only one, and you are only one, and he is only one, and she is only one. Some will step in, but many will not.

Thank God, all of us, EQUAL ONE.

And One is all it takes.

1. Thank you God for the power of ONE...

I understand the most difficult math equation ever given; many do not.

I am blessed.

2. Thank you God for time.

I understand that I was given the gift of MORE TIME when I beat cancer.

Many do not.

I am blessed.

3. Thank you God for Science. Just as the blood and lymph system run parallel through a body to both sustain life and detoxify, my Human Self, and my Spirit Self, also run parallel....

Once a month, they trip all over one another; but one will ALWAYS sustain life, and the other will ALWAYS find a way to detoxify.

I am blessed.

4. Thank you God for Faith.

Some ask how I could believe in something that I cannot see. I ask them how they could see it all around them and still not believe it.

I am blessed; please, bless them with the gift of sight, God.

5. Thank you God for helping me to continuously find creative ways to raise money to find a cure.

I know they will find a CURE, God, and I have HOPE.

And We'll be blessed.

Love,

Elle

Femininity Still

Art By Christina Kitchinson

1. Thank you God for femininity.....Fresh Flowers, Fruit Stand Berries, sundresses with sparkly flip-flops and Wide brimmed Hats.

2. Thank you God for femininity.....Child-birth, nursing, lulling, protecting, nurturing, singing soft songs in the quiet of the dawn.



3. Thank you God for femininity.....Thigh high stockings, weekend get-a-ways, steamy nights, sensual glances, naughty games, and exploration.



4. Thank you God for femininity.....The Sisters who guide me, The Mother who supports me, The girlfriends who lift me up, and the strangers who linger in the back ground that I still manage to touch.



Come closer...



5. Thank you God for femininity.....For pink t-shirts, flower tattoo's, and pixie-fairies. For the gift of womanhood,



I am forever grateful.



(Seems no matter how I slice it, I'm still always glad that I'm not a man...).



Lots of crazy love,



~Elle

Gratitude is YOURS

When I first started counting my blessings, it looked somewhat like this:

Thank you God for:

1. A banana Split shared 3 ways on a hot summer afternoon.

2. For fresh water to quench my thirst.

3. For fresh idea's to quench my mind.

4. For "signs".

5. For the Tao.

I give thanks.

The only thing that has changed since I first began to count my blessings, is that it sometimes feels impossible to narrow it down to just 5.

I could literally be here all day.

God, thank you for gratitude. Living a life of THANKS and APPRECIATION has renewed my tired spirit, and is slowly waking up my sleepy soul.

I could not ask for more.

The gift of a heart full of gratitude is there for everyone...it is a gift to you, also. All you have to do, is graciously accept it.

All my love,

Elle

On Courage

1. Thank you God for the courage to disappoint another, to be true to myself.

2. Thank you for the courage to sit in the center of JOY, theirs or my own, without remembering the limitations of being human.

3. Thank you God for the courage to look like a fool for LOVE.

God knows, I'd do anything for love.

4. Thank you God for the courage to follow my driving force and live life to it's fullest, settling for nothing less.

5. Thank you God for the courage to listen to an inner voice that will not leave me alone.

I know she means well...

xo

~Elle

Gratitude For Graditude

For tall skinny mocha's, and pennies on the ground.

For little boys who sleep, and cease to make a sound.





For the cat curled up at the foot of my bed,


And for the silly insanity that flows through my head.





For finger paints, sidewalk chalk, and home made clay,


There are blessings in store for us every day.





It never fails, they're all over the place,


Every where you turn, in every Sisters face.





The the flowers that bloom, and for berries so sweet,


For all the beautiful souls I am bound to meet.





For mid-day naps, and and Creme Bru Le Cheesecake,


For my health, my clarity, and and for old time's sake.





For the garden of dreams in which I have planted my heart.


For peace in knowing I'm doing my part.





For the past that made me who I am today,


And for my dogs who always want to play.





For the 3 year old that never stops talking,


(Just yesterday, I was wishing he were walking...).





For the 10 year old child who lives down the hall,


And every day asks to go to the mall....





For a strong hand to pull me in, when I get out of line,


And for the man who lets me go, when he knows that it's my time.





For choice, joy, freedom, and fortitude,


But mostof all, thank you God, for Gratitude.





By: Elle Febbo


Photography by Elle Febbo

The Sales Girl

Origional Painting by James, The Artist, Age 5

In my first year of college, I got a sales licence here in the state of California to sell automobiles. I was hired (yes, someone actually hired me), at a Nissan Dealership. I sold Nissan's...and yeah, used cars.

Well, I was supposed to be selling cars. I never actually did sell a car, but I was CLOSE once...

It was an OLD couple, in their 70's, maybe, and they found a car there on our lot they could afford. It was Red....with RED interior.

He tried HARD to LOVE it! He kept saying things like "Red! It looks so nice!", and "Its so clean!", and "I love the color Red!", but that old lady just wasn't happy. She kept saying, "but, it's SO red...there is just so much RED!"

They were squeezing together money for the down payment I had FINALLY talked my Sales Manager into taking, and when their daughter said she'd loan them the money at 10% interest, and they were going to buy the car. The old man felt sad about the car now because his daughter was charging interest to her own father, and the old woman was sad just cause it "looked like a lobster".

I slipped them a friends number...she'd been trying to sell the Maxima her parents bought her when she was 16 years old, and I knew they'd love it; I knew it was in their price range, and that they would have to borrow money from anyone.

So I slipped them her phone number and lost the sale.

And my job.

I lasted 3 whole weeks...

Now, I'm trying to SELL advertising on my website. Yes, I want to DONATE 1/2 the proceeds to Relay for Life and fulfill a commitment that I made to a Sister; to help her raise $5,000 for cancer research, and support Relay for Life and those who ARE Relay for Life, in finding a CURE for cancer.

As a Survivor myself, I am passionate about this cause, and and am hoping to raise A LOT more than $5,000. for this AMAZING organization, and the Beautiful Souls behind it.

The other half of my advertising dollars were to fund a trip I've wanted to take and travel with a writing group to teach reading and writing to underprivileged women. (I've wanted to do this trip for 3 years).

So today, I went into a thrift store with my grandma, as we LOVE to do together, and I asked the woman behind the counter what charity was behind the CAUSE for their store.

"We feed people; that's our only purpose".

"What?" I asked...seemed to simple.

"That's all; we just want to feed hungry people; there is no profit. We also accept canned donations in exchange for goods. We just want to feed people".

She looked at me kindly, and went on boxing up food, and gathering goods for local families.

"How do you decide WHO you feed?" I started to feel like a little kid, asking too many questions, but she was kind.

"There is no criteria to meet; other than being hungry".

I didn't know what to say. I whispered, "Cripe", then felt bad.

I was just stunned; I kept thinking there had to be more. So, I asked another question.

"How many people do you feed?" I felt like I was almost challenging her...

"About 3,000 local families. Most of them have signed in here (she pointed to some folders that had obviously been alphabetized). Some are just passing through, or homeless".

She continued on with what she was doing....

***

I wanted to run into the parking lot, and start sharing the news, but I didn't.

NOW, I want to share these people. I'm EXCITED, and INSPIRED!

The Pen is mightier than the sword, so I figured, "Great, I'll put these people up on my BLOG, and share the news! Oh, wait...those are paid advertising spaces. It wouldn't be fair to any other person or organization if I advertised for free.

I was so bothered...I have a medium, but I cannot use it.

I started to think about how I could give when I myself am on a limited budget and can donate food, but that's about it.

I asked the woman for the information to a website or contact name, so I could share the news...they're angels!

"I'll share it with my friends, I promise", I told her.

"Bless you", she said, softly.

I couldn't possibly IMAGINE selling ad space to these kind individuals...I want to share the good news, but...to take money, is to take DIRECTLY from the mouths of my community members. Ick...

That would be like selling an overpriced Lobster on Wheels to an elderly couple. I cant do it.

So, I thought about this all afternoon. I thought about Rocky; she is an ANGEL who runs www.mothersfightingforothers.org and she is AMAZING. I've also wondered, HOW can I get this AMAZING cause MORE AWARENESS!?!? How can I give back to a WOMAN who gives so much to those who, seemingly, have been forgotten?

I let it all go. I sat in the front yard after I got home from my time with my grandma, and let my mind go, and went into my conscious self. My NOW.

Where am I supposed to be, right NOW?

Right where I am.

WHERE is my place in that which is happening around me, to me, through me?

It is in Love.

I don't have time to make THOUSANDS OF LOVE JARS! Was my thought, LOUDLY in my head...

Love Jars? Thousands of them. A gift of love, with the blessings of awareness.

Thank you, God.

1. Thank you God for being all around me.

2. Thank you God for my place. I trust that wherever I am, is exactly where I am supposed to be.

3. Thank you for the 100WATT bulb you turned on in my head, and in my heart while I was trying for peace and quiet. I guess it's true; we don't always know what's best.

4. Thank you for trusting me to serve my purpose and follow my bliss. I wont let you down.

Bliss is fun!

5. Thank you God for Sisters who understand when I answer the phone and say, "Hello, I'm writing, can I call you back, thanks, I love you, bye" and hang up on them all in one breath.

(I cant lose my train of thought, or I get....undesirable to be around).

And Honestly, thank you for providing me the light and the reminder of the most precious gift I've ever received.

My Love Jar.

The Answers are all there....

So too is awareness, kindness, free ads for Charitable Organizations, inspiration and LOVE.

God...A daily reminder of LOVE...

How PERFECT.

My gift to my Sisters...and I keep my promise to the lady in the thrift store, honor MothersFightingForOthers, and raising awareness that LOVE is the Answer.

Love is the answer, no matter the question...you'll see.

Love,

Elle

Now, please, open your present. Literally.

http://barefootsisterhood.blogspot.com/