Good Things are All Around Us

It's another few days of rain, but there's been lots of shining things lately. Before I get to that, let me remind you that next Wednesday is Insecure Writer's Support Group posting day. The question for that day is:
What is the weirdest/coolest thing you've ever had to research for a story?
Or just share your current insecurity.

Visit today at IWSG and check out why and how you need to get reviews for your books. Also, don't forget to get ready for the Twitter Pitch we have coming on July 27th. A good idea between now and then is to check out other pitching sessions and get ideas on how to write the perfect tweet. Here is a place to start with #pitmad. They have pitches scheduled for the upcoming months. Time to practice.

In the good things category of the past week.
One of our neighbors has sheep and the new lambs are out and cavorting.
My daughter and I saw a Bald Eagle sitting in a tree by the river when we were driving.
Did some babysitting for the granddaughter (7 weeks old now) and she's developing her own pleasant little personality and sleeping all night for her parents.
I stopped the car at an intersection for my daughter to hop out and rescue a small turtle. Why do they like roads?
My children and husband were super supportive this past weekend.
My writing pace is keeping up so far. 2,000 words per day.
Friday will be the second rendition of the WE ARE THE WORLD blog hop. Join for good news.

There's been some not so good news but I'll keep that all to myself. It was a pretty stressful week so I'm looking at the good things.

 "The way I see it, every life is a pile of good things and bad things. The good things don't always soften the bad things, but vice versa, the bad things don't always spoil the good things and make them unimportant." —Doctor Who

What good thing, no matter how small, cheered you up this past week? Are you working on that pitch for Twitter? Do you see Bald Eagles or turtles around where you live? Make me smile today.

We Are the World

Today is the first ever post for the We Are the World Blogfest. A group of bloggers will share links to stories telling the positive tales of human behavior that are so often ignored or overlooked. It's easy to hear lots of bad news and wonder how our species has managed to survive. Today is a feel-good day.

If you're been a frequent visitor to my blog, you know I am a long time supporter of Penn State Thon. This 46 hour dance-a-thon is the largest Student-Run Philanthropy in the world. They not only raise money on Thon weekend every year, but all year long. Dozens of local high school have joined them and have their own Thon fundraisers that run for 12 hours.

What does Thon do with the money they raise? They work in cooperation with Hershey Medical Center's pediatric cancer center. Thon guarantees that parents will incur no expenses while their child is receiving medical treatment at the Hershey Medical Center. They pay for any medicine, hospital stay, and any medical expense until treatment is concluded. We all know someone who has fought cancer. The price of care is staggering. Thon makes sure the one thing parents and their sick child do not have to worry about is the cost of medicine.

The students do everything for Thon. They put so much heart into this event and this fundraiser. Ask a Penn State alumni about Thon, and you will get a taste of how it has touched their lives. And they've been doing this for 40 years.

Lots of people have heard of Penn State's recent infamy because of the child abuse scandal connected to football coaches. But Thon is what people should think of when they think of Penn State. In 2017, they raised $10,045,478.44 to pay for cancer treatments. Go, Nittany Lions.