If You Are Not Stretching and Growing, You Are Not Really Living

Jon Stolpe is an author and active blogger. Jon Stolpe's Stretched is focused on "stretching" and challenging others to get out of their comfort zones. 







He has a passion for family, leadership development, missions, and personal growth.

Jon's organization, H.O.P.E. Helping Other People Everywhere, is doing just that.  In his interview he shared how we can all pay it forward.  As a construction engineer, Jon has helped build homes in Guatemala for those widows with children who were homeless.  On his blog he gives each of us the opportunity to be involved with this mission.

During the interview, Jon shared the results of a survey Dr. Anthony Campolo, speaker, author, sociologist took of people who were over the age of 95.  He asked them if they could live their lives over...."What would you do differently?"

When Aging Parents Die, Sibling Rivalry Lives

 


Deborah Carroll, a former educator and educational publisher has written a book on a subject that is not easy for families to discuss.  The subject is the death of aging parents.  Her book, Tales from the Family Crypt:  When Aging Parents Die, Sibling Rivalry Lives is a must read!

There is nothing that can tear families apart faster or uglier than estate issues.


 

In many families, there are difficult, dysfunctional and even despicable siblings who want to grab money and power at a time when they should be communicating and pulling together as a unit. 

H.O.P.E. Here's One Possible Expectation

Warren Rodwell: former soldier, university teacher, hostage survivor, speaker, and songwriter, is the longest held Australian captive outside war. For more than fifteen (15) months, Warren was hidden and starved in island mangrove jungles with the constant threat of beheading if the terrorists’ original ransom demand for $US2 million was not paid.










When asked how he ever survived he responded with "resilience, adaptability, versatility, pragmatism, perseverance, and a dry sense of humor"

From Wikipedia:

Overcoming Fear on the Road to Stardom

Nancie Schipper is a 15-year-old singer and songwriter.  She started playing music at six years old, performing at the age of nine and was playing pubs at 13 years old.

She writes songs from her personal experiences and what she observes is happening in the world at large -- from a teenager's perspective.

As a shy person, she shares how she overcame the fear of performing in front of large groups of people and that when we face our fears, we can do whatever we want to accomplish!









You can purchase her songs on iTunes here

It's NOT Failure -- It's A Lesson

Glenda Thomas is a relationship and marriage coach who had brain aneurysm surgery May 2015.  In her memoir, The Next Chapter: Glenda's Brain Aneurysm Journey, she shares that journey.

This is a subject that most of us know little about but we need to be made aware.  Here are some facts:

It is estimated that six million people in the USA have an unruptured brain aneurysm - that's one in 50 people.  

The annual rate of rupture is approximately 8 - 10 per 100,000 - that is one every 18 minutes.  They are fatal in about 40% of cases.

Of those who survive, about 66% suffer permanent neurological deficit.  Approximately 15% of patients die before reaching the hospital.  

Glenda shares the importance of keeping your blood pressure DOWN and taking some precautions.

Glenda's Motto:

Do Something You've Never Done Before

In Glenda's book, The Change:  Insights into Self-Empowerment,  she is one of several 

I Deserved the Abuse.....And Other Lies

Roxanne Fawley went from longing for death to loving life, from debilitating depression to being extremely happy.  

In Roxanne's memoir But I Like It...And Other Lies, she shares her experience as a victim of physical, mental, and sexual abuse.  She wrote the book because she knows she is not the only one who believed the insidious lie that a woman likes or wants or even caused her own sexual abuse.

She shows us how she has been completely restored to health and freedom that comes from knowing the truth and rejecting all the lies that may hold us captive and hopeless because of abuse.

Were You Part of A Drug Company's Dirty Little Secret?

Shirley Ledlie wrote her memoir, Naked in the Wind -Chemo, Hair loss, and Deceit as a result of an unexpected battle she had to fight.

She was diagnosed with breast cancer at 47 and won the battle against the disease. BUT, after her treatment ended Shirley found herself in another seven-year battle with doctors and a drug company.

Shirley Ledlie had an unstoppable determination to win her conflict as she uncovered the truth about a little-known side-effect of a cancer treatment drug, Taxotere.

If You Have Been Bullied - You Are Not Alone

Teen Idol and pop star Meredith O'Connor is an anti-bullying icon who first rose to fame when her debut single "Celebrity" went viral on Youtube with over two million views the first two months of its release. 

It became a radio favorite, bringing her a fan base which became a cult-like following once she had established her anti-bullying platform. 

Her song "The Game," has touched the lives of thousands throughout the world, landing her a ten city tour as a headlining act for venues and schools.  Her next hit song "Just The Thing" was released on VEVO and Teen Nick gaining popularity on 17 radio stations in New York and over 400,000 views on VEVO.