Guest Blogger~Mike

G'day folks, i'm stopping by to share some thoughts and extend some thank yous.

It seems to me that there is an aspect of human nature that violently and instinctually resists pain and suffering in other people.

When global disasters such as the 2004 boxing day tsunami, or the bush fires in Victoria earlier this year occur individuals and communities rail against the injustice of the situation and find ways to make a difference.

I think it must be about trying to keep a balance in our little worlds. If something terrible happens and makes us feel like evil or injustice are dominating things then in order to feel good about life people take action to correct the scales.

We donate money, write notes, give hugs, coordinate events, hold vigils, advocate for change and share thoughts and feelings.

Stacy and I are facing a challenge and a personal disaster with our motor neuron disease diagnosis. Our experience has been that individuals and communities close to us are driven to attempt to redress this imbalance.

On Saturday the 31st of October our great friends Tony, Genevieve, Mat and Sandra ran a frisbee tournament called the Big Sky 9's. http://bigsky9s.blogspot.com/

This frisbee tournament involved 14 teams, 140 players, 10 hours of frisbee games and some concerted fund raising efforts. There is plenty of information on the Big Sky blog site listed above including some figures of the financial success of the day.

It was an excellent day and was a wonderful outpouring of love from the frisbee community to Stace and I. We are so grateful to the organising team, the volunteers who helped on the day and everyone who came to participate as players and spectators.

It was an amazing day, plus Stay's Allstars won the final.

On Sunday the 8th of November our little friend Leila Hutton organised a fun run fund raiser for Stacy and I. In Leila's words she had the idea for a fun run, expected that maybe 40 people or so would get involved and it would be a nice little day.

The reality was that it was a nice little day involving around 200 people, multiple donated raffle prizes, a delicious home cooked breakfast and 3km of hard but enjoyable yards around the Roma St. parklands.

Both events were always going to be successful as they were excellent positive events that Stacy and I could focus on and take strength and comfort from. What none of the organisers or Stacy and I could realistically had imagined was the quantity and magnitude of people's generosity.

On both of the fund raising days Stacy and I were overwhelmed by the dramatic gestures of kindness displayed by people who wished to help out in this difficult situation.

The events were amazing as a tool for easing the difficulties that Stacy and I will face over the coming time, and as an act of human kindness guided towards creating balance in our little world they were both incredibly successful.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the events. Thank you to all the people who made donations for raffles and personal donations to us. Thank you to Leila, Gen, Tony, Mat and Sandra for coordinating the events and providing an opportunity for people to express their support.

To everyone who has been so loving to Stacy and I, thank you very much. We feel like we are wrapped up in the community and very supported.