Shawn L. Bird

Original poetry, commentary, and fiction. All copyrights reserved.

invocation on sport August 3, 2012

Filed under: Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 5:57 pm
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At this moment, thousands of athletes are battling on their fields of endeavour in search of glory.  Through dedication and sacrifice they strive to be the best for one brief moment in time.  They glow with satisfaction as they achieve their best and receive the accolades.

For one shining moment, they achieve glory.

Let us be thankful for hard work and dedication which unite us in celebration of success.  Let us work together to achieve our club goals, that we may celebrate together the improvements we, as Rotarians, make in our communities and our world.

(c) Shawn Bird.  Free use within Rotary.  Please credit Shawn, and record your club and the date you used this invocation in the comments below.

 

Invocation for dads June 16, 2012

Filed under: Poetry,Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:29 pm
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Our fathers are our first role models of what it is to be a man.

If we are blessed to have a good one driving our household mini van.

He shows us how a romantic partner should behave;

He demonstrates just how our children should be raised.

He shows us this without a word, by what he does each day,

So we’ll reflect his teaching as we go on about our way.

If we weren’t blessed to have our  father  there to show us what to do,

Let us be thankful there are men, who’ll gather us in, too.

In thanks for each man, standing by his family,

Who cares, provides,  corrects and loves, from those of us who see.

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© Shawn L. Bird 2012  Free use within Rotary, though please indicate when and where you have used the invocation by leaving a comment below.  Thanks!

 

Writers Wanted! May 23, 2012

Filed under: Rotary,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:41 am
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The Rotary Club of Salmon Arm (Shuswap)  a.k.a. Shuswap Rotary Club has an awesome fund raiser that we’d love you to be part of!

We are searching for writers of poetry, fiction and creative non-fiction (plus photographers) to submit their work for an opportunity to be published in an anthology called On the Shores of Shuswap Lake.  The work must relate to life in the Shuswap, and fit within the length criteria, otherwise, you’re free to explore all options!  The deadline for submissions is July 31st.

You grant non-exclusive rights to Shuswap Rotary to publish your work in the anthology.  Non-exclusive means that as far as Shuswap Rotary is concerned, you’re welcome to offer the piece to any other publication or contest, even if it’s accepted for the anthology.  An entry fee of $10 must accompany your work, and is considered a donation to Rotary, to support our community and international projects.

What would you like to write about? 

Your first houseboating trip?  An interesting wild flower?  Geographical strata?  Your grandmother?  An adventure at your summer cabin?  The time you nearly drowned in Shuswap Lake?  Watching the salmon run at Adams River?

Deadline is July 31st, 2012.  We’re looking forward to hearing  from you!

Here’s the official info and fine print:

HandbillOntheShoresShuswapLake

What are those community and international projects undertaken by Shuswap Rotary?  Here are a few:

Blackburn Park universal access playground, Victim Services, Air Force Cadets, Women’s Shelter, R. J. Haney House Museum, Salmon Arm Fall Fair, Sheltered Workshop, Barani Kenya Lunch Program, Fathers’ Day Fishing Derby, Guatemala Midwives, Music Festival, Ecuador Dental Mission,  Gamma Probe for Salmon Arm Hospital, Highway clean ups, Trail maintenance…

 

inspiring whales… April 20, 2012

Filed under: Commentary,Pondering,Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 4:20 pm
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On my Facebook feed today was the inspiring story of divers who rescued an entrapped humpback whale, and the inspiring appreciation she showed for their efforts.

Attending to due diligence, I investigated the story and discovered on the urban legends.com site (I sure hope no one ever discredits them) that the story was in fact true.

Here is a link to the original newspaper article relating the event that happened in 2005 off the coast of San Francisco.

I really like how the anonymous Facebook poster summarized the significance of this experience:

 May you, and all those you love, be so blessed and fortunate to be surrounded by people who will help you get untangled from the things that are binding you. And, may you always know the joy of giving and receiving gratitude.

Both giving gratitude and receiving it provide joy.  While troubles shared are halved, gratitude doubles joy.  I like the math.

 

SERVICE ABOVE SELF March 15, 2012

Filed under: Rotary — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:43 am
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The following article was written for the Rotary page in the local Shuswap Observer paper.

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SHUSWAP ROTARY MEMBERS DEMONSTRATE THE ROTARY MOTTO: SERVICE ABOVE SELF

When we choose to join a Rotary Club, we choose to commit ourselves to community and international service. Sometimes our service is about fundraising for a worthwhile project, like our Pennies for Heaven drop held at the fair which raised money for the purchase of a Gamma probe for the hospital and for the accessible playground being built at Blackburn Park. Other projects are hands-on. There are small projects, like fixing up trails at Haney Park, or the Rotary Trail that winds from Little Mountain to Shuswap Lake. We clean up parks, like Peter Jennick Park on the shoreline. These small projects offer community improvement, and are a visible demonstration of our effort.

However, some of our projects are larger in scope, and make a significant difference in the lives of people around the world. Last summer, Mike Boudreau of Tech-Brew Engineering went to Kenya. As a result of meeting with a Rotary Club there, he organized a project to improve a water system, and to provide lunches for students at Burrani High School. Knowing how important nutrition is to learning, we know that this project is making a difference.

Dental Mission Esperanza 2012. Imagine the pain of these barnacle-like cavities

Another huge project is the dental mission to poor people in Cuenca Ecuador. In January of this year Dr. Eugene Tymkiw and dental assistant Donna Cook were part of Medical Dental Mission Esperanza (“hope”) providing dental treatment to children in poor mountain schools as well as to patients about to have orthopedic surgery. When our club saw photos of the teeth he treated, some that looked more like barnacles than teeth, we were particularly proud to support Gene in his international service. Our club helped purchase a portable digital dental x-ray machine which proved to be invaluable to the team.

Dr Gene Tymkiw and happy patient in Ecuador

Rotary makes a difference in our community and our world. We’re proud to put service above self. We invite you to join us.  Come visit our club website at ShuswapRotary.org

 

birthday invocation February 22, 2012

Filed under: Rotary,Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 1:55 pm
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February 23rd is the birthday of Rotary. Paul Harris, was 37 when he gathered some professional connections and they formed the world’s first service club in Chicago in 1905.

Service is action in support of others.  A small action can make a difference.  It isn’t about glamour; it’s about need.  A toilet is a rather basic thing, but  the simple addition of  public toilets in down town Chicago in 1907 surely offered  the blissful relief of basic urgencies for many a person!

Let us remember that service is about meeting the  needs of others, and that when we serve those needs, we can provide blissful relief at the most basic level.  Let us be thankful we have the means and ability to change lives with our most simple service.

© Shawn Bird 2012.  Free use within Rotary.  Please credit Shawn’s authorship, and leave a message in the Comment area below explaining when and where you used her words.  Thanks!
 

new year invocation December 31, 2011

Filed under: Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:59 am
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A new year is a time for new beginnings, as well as a time to reflect on the past.  It is a chance for us to celebrate our successes, and plan to have a wonderful year.  As a new year dawns, let us consider how we can use the next 365 days to make a difference on the planet.  Let us be thankful for what we have achieved, and mindful of our responsibility to continue the good works.  Our commitment to service can make the world a better place.

Free use within Rotary.  Please credit Shawn Bird, Rotary Club of Salmon Arm (Shuswap), and record in the comment space below where and when you used the invocation.
 

be October 24, 2011

Filed under: Poetry,Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 10:41 pm
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Be who you are

Be what you are

Be when you are

Be where you are

Be why you are

Be how you are

Yourself

a valuable, unique person

existing in the now

celebrating your place in the world

just because you are

you

 

day of peace September 21, 2011

Filed under: Pondering,Rotary — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:47 am
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Today is International Day of Peace. Some people think that peace has to exist within the context of its contrast to war. Real peace goes beyond that. Nearly four hundred years ago the Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza observed,

Peace is not an absence of war, it is a virtue, a state of mind, a disposition for benevolence, confidence, justice.

I like this concept.  We work for peace in our world, by being peaceful with our family and our neighbours.  We have to live peace in our daily relationships.

When challenged by those who are not inclined to peaceful existence, or whose boastful, aggressive ways deliberately obliterate peace wherever they are, we demonstrate either our mastery over this concept, or our struggles.

Peace is an attitude.  Maintaining it can be a daily personal battle.

 

use it September 20, 2011

Filed under: Rotary invocations — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:48 am
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Nazarene preacher W. T. Purkiser said,

“Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.”

So let us be thankful for our meal, our lives, our friends and our many blessings, and then let us use each to fuel positive change around us.

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(c) Shawn Bird 2011  Free use within Rotary.  Please credit Shawn when you share this in your club. Please also leave a comment to document your club  and when you intend to use it, for your members’ information.  With thanks