#29 Les Miz

EVERGREEN Professional Hypnotherapy

Stockton’s Small Business of the Year 2003-2004

6820 Pacific Ave., Ste. 2-B Stockton, CA 95207 (209)472-0722

1111 J Street, Ste. G101, Modesto, CA 95354 (209)622-3837

www.egreen.net

Welcome to EVERGREEN OUTREACH!

Recently Frank and I (Ginny) went to a performance of Les Mis, put on by the St. Mary’s High School Theatre Group. We enjoyed it on many levels: 1) It took us back to when our daughter was in community theater from age of 8 to 15, and to the many musical classics we took her to see in SF -- Kismet, Brigadoon, Phantom of the Opera, etc. 2) Les Mis is my own personal favorite. I saw it several times on the stage and I hope someday it’s made into a movie as outstanding as Phantom is on DVD. 3) It was truly uplifting to see the remarkable talent displayed by many local performers ranging in age from 6 to 18, especially knowing full well the time, energy and effort that goes into such a production. We don’t know any of them personally, but nonetheless we enjoyed a sense of pride.

The “kids” -- caught up in their roles -- made us smile, laugh, choke up, and ponder the meaning of life. I literally had to hold back tears in the closing scene when, at the wedding of his daughter, the dying Jean Valjean sang the lyrics, “She was never mine to keep...”

Matter of fact I feel a little misty again even as I type this. Trite but true: Children grow up so quickly. I’ve raised three of my own and also pitched in during the terrible teens to raise several “throw-away” kids whose own parents couldn’t be bothered. Looking back, I wish I had it all to do over again. I would certainly do it differently. I’d spend less time harping and more time holding hands and hugging. I remember looking at my little boys’ hands tucked into my own and thinking, “Someday these hands will be bigger than mine.” Then I watched that happen in the blink of an eye. Another blink and they had children and now grandchildren of their own.

The “boys” turn 50 and 48 this year, and have both exceeded my wildest hopes for their success. My daughter just turned 33 and is living her lifelong dream -- to be a fulltime, stay-at-home mom. Bless her heart, she tells me she learned from the best, but come to think of it, that compliment might be followed by, “Hey, I need a favor…” J Nonetheless, I give all three of my “kids” an A+ for achievement, each in their own area of life. Sometimes I believe they are who and where and what they are despite me rather than because of me. No do-overs, but living in the present is now an opportunity to make every adult interaction with them as meaningful as possible.

Last year we lost our grandson, little Lucas, during my daughter’s fifth month of pregnancy, and as I type this his ashes are being cast by the wind over the sea in Monterey. On future trips to the seashore I’ll build sandcastles for him.

I didn’t get to see him, hold him, rock him, sing to him, read to him, kiss him, give him a ride on my horse or tell him how much I loved him, so I did what I could -- I dedicated my latest book to him. The gesture falls short and fell flat on this page as I typed about it, but it’s all I have to offer other than the tears that balance on my lower lids whenever I remember him. On a happy note, his mom is expecting again (with her doctor’s blessings), due in September.

James, our affiliate and treasured friend, has kids of his own, and we enjoy them vicariously through the stories he tells and the pictures he shows us. The new book, Charming Children -- How the Relaxation Game Helps Good Parents Raise Great Kids, was inspired by his young son, Elliott. It teaches parents how to use bedtime as an opportunity to enjoy talking with their kids using specific language and imagery to influence them in a way that lasts a lifetime. The book is receiving rave reviews, and I’m pleased to announce it’s now available on www.Amazon.com , as well as on our web site.

In our line of work we see mostly adults, but children are wonderfully receptive to the power of suggestion, and we love working with them. Look into their eyes and you see our (not only their) future. Kids are imaginative and receptive and more than happy to have therapeutic fun with us in the playground of the mind, as I like to call the subconscious. It’s interesting to note that children are a combination of fragile and resilient. In a world that is never as simple as it was “back when” but always becoming more complex, kids need all the help they can get. My goal when James said to me, “I have a great idea for a book but I’m not a writer and you are,” was to provide that help. In the words of a school district nurse who reviewed Charming Children, “I wish my parents had used this book when I was young!”