Monday, March 3, 2014

March...

March is a month of celebration of all sorts.   First and foremost, it is the month in which I was born and that’s a celebration in itself.   But we begin the 2nd of March celebrating Dr. Seuss – and his contribution to the literary world of children.  Dr. Seuss is most famous for his Green Eggs and Ham, and Cat in The Hat series.  Beneath all the rhyming, quotes, there is wisdom, there is a push for children to dream bigger , to use their voices, and last but not least there is an imagination that is fostered that only leaves us to feel warm and fuzzy inside.   As adults, it again reminds us of the simple yet profound values of life. 

March is also Women’s History Month – more specifically International Women’s Day on March 8, 2014.  Celebrating women in all their roles and achievements during this month is important.  For one we acknowledge the various women in our lives – our friends, our mothers, our aunts, our sisters, our daughters, nieces, grandmothers and the list goes on.  From the womb we came, and have stood tall and strong.  We have broken records, traditions that limited our thinking, dared to dream big when our mothers and grandmothers would not dare dream, but more than that we have survived. We have heard stories and we have seen the actual stories – so many of us are the actual story – and our stories are tales of survival. Every time we use our voice to express our needs, to stand up for a cause, to soothe someone in pain, to create a space, sing our our hearts we are making a mark in history of that of survival.   Everyday we make choices through our actions, words, and vision for our daughters, sons, nieces, nephews and be an example to live in a violent free world and a world that is equal.  And this month we celebrate the woman in all its totality.   We acknowledge the worth of that woman and use this month to celebrate our victories, our losses, our loves, our fears, our beauty, our determination, our wisdom and our courage.  Below is a link to a beautiful slideshow from Reuters celebrating International Women’s Month.

March is also Social Work Month.   We celebrate and acknowledge the Social Work profession. Social workers work in all different sectors – from schools, to hospitals, to professors, to child welfare, to private practice, to activists to researchers.   We are the voices of the weak, we are the voices of  those who need advocacy, but more than that we stand for the basic principle that all individuals need to be treated with respect, dignity and a right to self-determination.  We carry that message in any sector that we work – whether we are an administrator or a psychotherapist or a hospice worker or child welfare advocate.   It is these principles that guide us and give voices to the ones that often don’t have one..   So to all Social Workers – a happy Social Worker’s Month to you…May your work be acknowledged and may you dare to dream things that are bigger than yourself.  

Last but not least – March signifies the arrival of spring.  Spring brings with it hope. The winter may have been dreary, cold- winter is also a time to go inward, introspect and contemplation. And when spring comes, it reminds us of renewal, rebirth, and revelation. It makes us believe in the miracle of life as we witness natures' beauty bloom all around .  Happy March!

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