Impossible To Ignore

Sunday night, after the very friendly Holiday Sing-Along, I sat with Michele and had one of our very frequent 'life talks'  (I adore them).  We discussed my very recent relapse of Crohn's Disease.  Lately, I feel like this is all I talk about.  Mainly because, well... it's all that I can think about.  Being able to vent about it with friends and family has always come very easily.  I'm a talker.  


But I started to really think about how rough it's been lately.  And how great it would feel to talk with someone else who understands my situation first-hand.  I then noticed that the very small, but very significant light bulb had gone off above my head.

I needed to create this opportunity for myself. 

So, I got my pencils together and drew up Step One.

aligatorshoe@gmail.com

The next morning, my roomie and I hopped in her '84 VW Van,

(that's right) and headed to Staples.  I made enough copies 

of this flyer to cover Rhode Island.

And also had to scrape snow from the windshield with a pizza box.

Because a fuse blew and the wipers bit the dust.  I guess it's a good thing

that we never clean out that van.

I started on foot, with a backpack filled with flyers, tacks and 

tape, to accomplish Step Two.

The Brighton P.O. was the first stop.  

I continued walking for hours, and it snowed for the 

entire duration of my mission.

But I couldn't stop. 

I went in bars, book stores, cafes, coffee shops, post offices and

 libraries to spread the word.  I posted flyers in record boutiques, comic book stores and 

so many Starbuck's that I'm still trying to get their infectious Holiday music 

out of my head.

I am quite happy to say that my Crohn's Disease and 

Ulcerative Colitis Support Group flyers had gotten a much more positive 

response from shop-keepers and small business owners than I had anticipated.

People were generally interested, asked questions, and I even met some

people who know a Crohn's patient or two.

I've dealt with being sick for the last ten years.  I've been gawked at, ostracized, poked, prodded, publicly humiliated, and emotionally and physically scarred.  I've learned more about life than I could have ever imagined by having Crohn's Disease.  But I talked about it.  In sharing my fight, I learned strength.  And I can only hope to provide a fraction of what I've found to others, as well as learn so much more for myself by creating this support group.

If you or someone you know is suffering from Crohn's Disease or Ulcerative Colitis,

and would like to talk about it, please e-mail me at Aligatorshoe@gmail.com. 

 Right now this is a small project.  But  I know that if we better educate

 ourselves and each other of alternative approaches to dealing with this sickness, we can undoubtedly come together to KICK Crohn's.