Obama’s Tonight Show Comment is Offensive

I rarely send in a letter to the editor but a recent comment made by our President hit a nerve with me, so here is the letter I wrote.

President Obama made an appearance on a comedy show and when asked about his bowling score Obama bragged that he recently bowled a 129 on the white house alley, and then he said, “it’s like Special Olympics or something”. I am outraged by this comment and find it extremely offensive to my family and those who are dedicated to Special Olympics and the amazing outreach they have.

Some people may defend that he was just joking! Wake up America....this was not funny! In our family we have an amazing 24 year old special needs son who is a tremendous human being! He has participated in many Special Olympic sports (including bowling) for the past several years and he is so proud of his accomplishments, We have come to know many coaches and volunteers that serve this organization with their whole hearts and they are very respected and loved for their service and commitment.

Shame on the President of our United States of America for flippantly making a comment like this. I also disagree that he took the time to appear on a comedy show when we have a nation in economic crisis, the threat of terrorism, and total break down in the trust in our government. I pray God shows mercy on this country and that people will stay strong in their faith that God is in control, and NOT man! Thanks for reading this.

Here is the video link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXcgpZwsBPY&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fshowhype%2Ecom%2Fvideo%2Fpresident%5Fobama%5Fs%5Fspecial%5Folympics%5Fcomment%5F03%5F19%5F09%2F&feature=player_embedded

Update: Evidently there was an apology http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/03/20/obama-apologizes-special-olympics-bowling-joke/..
But I have always been taught: "THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK!"....So....I still find the flippant comment offensive!

Our Grandchildren from GR!

Well....actually it's Jenison, not GR....but anyway:)
Heidi sent these pics today and I wanted to share them with you!
We are going to see them a week from Saturday.....can't wait!!!
If I could....I'd visit every week!! I hate to miss out on the kids growing up!!!

The twins....Kirsten and Rachelle
Rachelle.....I love this outfit!!

Standing pretty!

Kirsten Smiling for the camera

Big Brother Andrew

Jonny

Rachelle and Jon

Kirsten

Sing pretty!! Ahhh!

The Nichols Bunch:)

Joel's "24th" Birthday Celebration

I can't believe our youngest son just turned "24"!!! Joel celebrated his birthday March 17th with a good day at school and a dinner at the Timbers with family and friends! We are so proud of Joel and his accomplishments! Although Joel has faced many challenges in growing up....he has a good heart and lots of determination! he also has highly developed social skills :) where he can talk to anybody, make them smile, and is always eager to help others out!

We had a really fun time at dinner! Grandpa and Grandma Hopkins came from Onekama, Jason and Emily were here with their kids, and good family friends Bill, Mandy, and Lily joined him as well! We missed having Kurt and Heidi and their kids with us....but Kurt works weeknights! We are looking forward to going to Jenison at the end of the month!!!

I hope you enjoy these pics from the party! We had a great time! Thanks Emily for baking a cake for Joel.......it was really yummy....even if it did turn our teeth blue:) LOL

Have a blessed week everyone......and stop by often....now that spring is almost here I am quite motivated! Love to you all!

A new basketball
New t-shirt that says:
"I am Not Trying To Be Difficult"
"It comes Naturally"
Joel got a kick out of that:)
Blowing the candles out

Joel and our waitress Alicia.

She knew Joel from high school, and was

one of my former students.

The party celebrants:)

Isaac and Seth

Seth

Annabelle

Mandy, Madeline, and Lily

Emily , Mandy, and Madeline

My parents and me

Ken and Madeline

Mandy, Judy, Bill

Judy, Mandy, Lily

(we hadn't seen each other for 3 months!)

Emily and Grandpa Hopkins

Grandma Hopkins, Madeline and Jason

Grandpa Hopkins getting Madeline to smile:)
Andrew Shankland and Jason

While we were at the Timbers we ran into Andrew and Rebecca Shankland and their 5 month old daughter Lillian Sue Shankland. Jason and Andrew went to Heritage Christian together and were great friends growing up. Now here they are with their daughters who are less than one month apart.

This Past Week's Events

I have no idea where my weeks are going.....but I can tell you they are going by fast!!!! Yet sometimes not fast enough as we wait for the snow to melt!!! I was trying to remember what I did this week:) Do you ever keep track of a week? It's complicated isn't it!!?

I know on Monday it was FREEZING out again with lots of snow lingering from last Sunday evening and I didn't go anywhere. On Tuesday I went with Joel to his dentist appointment......3 cavities filled......arghhh....but he was such a trooper and really entertains the dental staff at Dental health Professionals. Our Dentist is Dr. Giglio (jee-lee-oh) and he has a wonderful way with Joel...humorous..compassionate..and complimentary! Joel's next appointment is April Fool's day....so he is already scheming up a practical joke!

Wednesday was windy and blustery and cold again.....so I did not leave the comfort of our home! On Thursday.....I had Thursday's with Grandma with Isaac and Seth. I always look forward to this time with the boys and we experience all sorts of joys during the day! One of the highlights is our weekly game of "hide and seek". I know.....slow moving Grandma here....it's quite a humorous sight to see me scurry to hide! But oh the joy when they find me!!!!!! I always let out a big "AHHHH" when they find me...and the chase continues as we search for each other when we get our turn! Seth by far is the quickest counter.....when it's his turn to count...it goes like this......1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10, 17,20....."here I come....ready or not!!" Then we go back and count again....much slower...using all 20 numbers!! You've gotta be quick when hiding on Seth!

Later in the day when Seth was napping and Isaac was having quiet time I had made a call to Nancy Lanning about an upcoming shower. Well, while we were talking I told her that Isaac was building a dump truck and was on step #21. She mentioned that maybe he will be an engineer like Grandpa Kenny or a builder. After I was off the phone I told Isaac what Nancy said....and he said "Oh no Grandma...I'm not going to be an engineer....I am going to be a missionary!" Can you call Nancy back and tell her that?? So I did.....smiling all the way!! Oh....a missionary...AND an artist!

On Thursday evening Emily picked me up and took me to a wedding shower for Hannah (Haven) Cruz. I had the blessing of bringing the devotional for the shower.....and am praising God for giving me the words to encourage Hannah in her new marriage!

Fiamm has cut back to four day work weeks in the months of Feb. and March, so Ken and I have been enjoying our Friday's together. Last week he baked Amish Friendship bread and delivered to people and this week he dropped me off at CHS for an hour to listen to the CHS Chorale who is going to District Choir Festival next week. We grabbed a quick Mickey D lunch and enjoyed a quiet afternoon.

Below is a picture of me, Cori Brown, and Ann Hunt. Cori is the Choir director at CHS and Ann is her accompanist. It was wonderful to hear the students sing! The musicianship is excellent and I was moved to tears as I listened to the beauty of the songs! Cori's style of teaching is soooo much like mine! She is organized, disciplined, precise, and the students show her great respect! Oh wait.....the big difference between us though is that she keeps her desk neat and tidy.....and mine was ALWAYS a mess:)

Thanks Cori for having me in to "share the moment"....I loved it!!!

Future Plans

I guess there's no better time than the present to share with you the news that I will not be returning to teaching next year and will be retiring.

Not of my own choosing mind you....but because my illness prevents me from doing my job. I wrestled with this decision over and over in the beginning....still holding out that one day I would improve to the point that I could teach five performing groups a day, handle all of the concerts, festivals, and produce great musicals. But God has other plans for me...and I have great peace in my heart regarding this decision.

After almost 31 years in the classroom...retirement seemed a long way off!

I always imagined the day I would decide to retire would be the day I felt I needed to "move on" for the sake of the program. I always pictured my "last concert" my "fond farewell to students"...you know, my "Mrs. Nichols Opus". But alas, it wasn't meant to be.....and again, all a special part of God's design in my life!

Now I have opportunities to reach out in different ways than I had time for before. My life is a much slower pace....but still my days are filled with family, joy, prayer, and good conversation.

We look at this as a new chapter in our lives and are excited to see the pages of the book unfold! Things have fallen into place already such as long term disability, I was awarded social security disability, and have submitted my application for retirement disability. Everything takes a lot of time....but so far, all doors have been opened and things are working out for a smooth transition into retirement. Not the way I planned....but the way God intended and knew way in advance!

Thank you all once again for your love and support as I have battled this disease called "scleroderma". Thank you to our family and friends for being there any time we needed you. We are grateful to each of you for your prayer support and your church's prayer support. We know my story has reached many people....and our desire is that we would continue to be an encouragement to others as we meet the daily challenges of my health.