Living with me now is no small feat, just ask my kids. Our afternoon conversations have gone from “Do you guys want chicken or meatloaf for dinner?” to “Over 100 children die annually from All Terrain Vehicle accidents. What would you do to help decrease that number?” and as I stare into the blank faces of my children I realize there is a better place to pose this question. So here ya go… “Over 100 children die annually in ATV accidents. What would you do to help decrease that number?” I am now posting the cyber equivalent to a suggestion box and all suggestions are welcome so get involved! If you have any ideas on spreading ATV Awareness then click on Before and After and post away.

I was reading this morning and praying for inspiration for today when my phone rang. Sometimes I sit in the quiet house thinking about J.T. and thinking about the cause and I let the machine get it. However this morning I wasn’t feeling anything but sadness and the ringing was a welcomed distraction. It was a woman who's son went to school with J.T. her son was in pain over the loss of his friend and she wanted to let me know that her son who is severely ADHD could always count on J.T. for a playmate. She said J.T. always had time to be his friend and that he missed him. I knew J.T. was compassionate, kind, and considerate but the lesson he taught me through this story is beyond what I even knew about my son. See what J.T. figured out is that time is love. Time is the most precious gift we can give of ourselves to others. He taught me that the best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time and the best time to love is now.

You don’t need a lot to make a change in this world. I have learned through this awesome loss that sometimes all it takes is a good light to see what you may have normally missed, the courage to have a conversation you would normally avoid, and a few great friends that support you in all you are trying to accomplish.

“Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm... As you grow older you will discover that you have two hands. One for helping yourself, the other for helping others.”
Audrey Hepburn


“What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult for each other?”
George Eliot


“The real test of character is whether you will do the right thing even when it costs more than you want to pay.”
Michael Josephson

As the walk approaches I am truly beginning to see the importance of what we are walking for. We are not only walking for awareness but for those that can no longer walk for themselves. For the lives that the Yamaha Rhino and other ATV's have erased away or forever changed. I want to walk for J.T., and for Sonny, and for Allie. I want to walk for Brandon and Tynan, Brooklyn and Dwight. I want to walk for Wyatt, and Benjamin, and Whitney. I want to walk for each and every story I’ve heard, for every life changed. I want to walk so that no more lives are changed in this way and I will.