Seriously...Give

Hope your Labor Day weekend is going well, mine is. Hey, while I've got your attention, how's about we get serious for a few minutes, okay?

As I type this, the Jerry Lewis MDA telethon is on television. Actually, it's the local part, but you know what I mean. Look, we all know that the telethon is the biggest train wreck on t.v. We all cringe at the talent, laugh at the crap production, and long for the days when Lewis was intentionally funny as opposed to the hot mess he is now. And we've all been guilty of tuning out during the testimonials.

But we should be better than that. The tuning out part, I mean, that other stuff is okay. Why do we tune out the hard part? The whole point of the telethon is the stories we hear about the people whose lives are affected by Muscular Dystrophy every day. This is a disease that can and does strike anyone, anywhere, anytime. People's lives get turned upside down all the time. Parents lose their children. Children lose parents. Brothers and sisters are taken away. Slowly. Painfully. And there's still no cure.

That's uncomfortable and scary. And that's why we tune it all out. We, as a whole, don't like to watch that kind of stuff so we don't watch it, we don't think about it and we don't do anything about it. Again, we should be better than that.

Okay, fellow parents, this part's for you. Most of us are used to watching our kids grow stronger every day. We enjoy watching them grow up and become responsible citizens, and carry on as well rounded adults who will one day give us grandchildren and take care of us in our declining years. But what if that wasn't the case? What if our kids were getting weaker? What if we had to sell everything we had to keep them alive? What if we had to watch them die and we were powerless to stop it? Don't you think you'd want someone to listen to your story and help?

Or, how about this...what if you hit your mid fifties and suddenly begin to lose control of your speech and your muscles? What if it's your spouse? Try explaining to a small child that Mommy can't hold her kids anymore and she never will again.

See, MD, in any of its forms, doesn't care about you. It doesn't care how old you are, how rich you are, your gender, your race, if it's your birthday or Christmas or anything. It's not necessarily hereditary, and people don't cause it. If it wants to get you, it will. And there's still no cure.

Feeling scared yet? Feeling guilty yet? You should be. So give a little something why don't you? You don't have to give a lot, even a dollar is welcome. Hey, you see a firefighter throw fifty cents in his boot. Well, make sure he's part of the program and actually taking donations-don't just bum rush the dude. You get the point. Call in during the telethon, or go to http://www.mda.org and give a little something. You'll be doing a good thing and you'll feel good too.

Alright. You may now go back to your Labor Day celebration in whatever form it takes. I'll check back in soon with some lighter stuff. Good night and God bless.