Maiah's Visual Bucket List - Why I'm Helping a Dream Come True

Some of you might be wondering why I'm sharing a link to a Go Fund Me page to raise money for someone you've never heard of?

Well it's one of those things. Up until recently I had never heard of Maiah either. In fact her and her mother, Mandy are total strangers. Well at least they were when I first heard about them.

A few weeks ago I was reading through some comments (dangerous I know!) on a story that was shared in a post by Kidspot, which is a great online community for all things parenting relating. The post was about a woman receiving money from a radio station and other kind-hearted listeners after she had told the story of her plight of trying to find the money for therapies for her ASD child. Some comments were pointing out the fact that some of the money raised was going towards a Disneyland trip did not sit well with them. Now I don't wish to create a debate about that case … Rather to set the scene.

Because the comment that spoke to me was written by Mandy who said simply that she would love to just have the money to take her vision impaired daughter to the theme parks on the Gold Coast before she goes blind.

For some reason I couldn't get it out of my head. The idea that of all the things a child could put on a wish list she simply wanted to do what so many other kids get to do, go to the major theme parks. Plus the idea that she could actually go blind one day without ever having been able to have a theme park holiday just sounded wrong to me. Surely there was something that could be done? Living on the Gold Coast I find plenty of us take the theme parks for granted. Some kids get to go every weekend. But just one visit would be a dream come true for this one young girl and I just felt I had to try and help.

So I contacted Kidspot who got in touch with Mandy and it was agreed I could set up a Go Fund Me account. I've since spoke to Mandy who graciously told me more about her amazing daughter. I made no promises about what we might achieve as I'm hardly the type of person that makes posts go viral. However I felt I had to at least try to help.

The more I found out about Maiah the more I wanted to help. Here is a girl that has been going blind her whole life due to having a form of Rod Cones Dystrophy. Her night vision is completely gone and her peripheral vision is better than her front on vision which means she often turns her head in an attempt to make sense of her environment. So she is already vision impaired but it will progress and one day she will go completely blind. Plus recently she was also diagnosed with epilepsy.

Through all this Maiah is a happy, friendly 13 year old who loves her sisters and longs to work with animals.

She has a simple visual bucket list which lists things she would like to do before she loses her sight completely. Well I think it is a relatively simple list considering what some kids might ask for.

Her list is:

1. To see the theme parks on the Gold Coast
2. To go to Australia Zoo and meet Bindi
3. To swim with dolphins
4. To meet Luke and Cody from House Rules.

I don't know if we will be able to manage all those things. But surely we can manage to get enough money together to give this family a trip of a lifetime? Mandy and her partner have 5 children between them and have never had a family holiday. Those of us who are parents can well imagine how much Mandy wants to bring her daughter’s dream to fruition but has simply never been able to do so.

So below is the link to the campaign. I know it's often said but it really does stand in this case and that is that even a few dollars will help. If lots of people donate a few dollars then Maiah could well get her dream holiday.  If you genuinely can't spare a few dollars then that is fine too and I totally understand - but please think about sharing the link so we can get as many people knowing about this as possible.

Thanks in advance for helping!

https://www.gofundme.com/2dr9ezw

#3 Make a Wish list Collage

So I'm a day late with my second post for the Odd May Blog Challenge. But this is the brilliance of the idea in that you post every second day so being a day late can totally work. Well that's my story and I'm sticking to it ...

Anyway a collage of my wish list? Well I could have gone all out and made it a big craft project which would have been fun and is perhaps something I should do one day. Whether you call it a vision board or a collage or whatever there are some major positives in creating a visual reminder of what you want from life.

But instead I decided to make something digital using some photos and text. It was simple to put together and I knew if I planned anything too ambitious it probably wouldn't get done.

I also decided to limit it to a few things. I mean there is nothing wrong with wishing for a mansion or a million dollars and things like that but I wanted to narrow it and think about a few things that are simple but still very much wanted. I decided also to go with the first few things that came into my mind - no censorship.

So here is my collage.

My small wish list is for me to:

1. Travel more. I love travel and hope to see a lot more places before I die. The picture is from a recent trip to Japan.

2. Have more pain free days. Given my health conditions ( fibromyalgia amongst others) I find myself always wanting more pain free days where I can get things done. I know every day won't be a pain free day but a few more would be nice!

3. A claw foot bath. I've always wanted one. I love taking baths. They are the ultimate in pampering and luxury for me and I would love a traditional looking claw foot bath in a huge bathroom.

4. More visits to the Theatre. My first real writing gig was for a Theatre website (www.theatrepeople.com.au) and as much as I've always enjoyed the theatre there are so many shows out there just waiting to be seen by me. If I could I would go every week! But maybe once a month or so is doable. Let's see.

5. My own gorgeous study or library or both combined. I'd love something that looks like it came from an old English drawing room full of history and character. It would be wonderful even if it would probably not go with the decor in the rest of the house!

So there you have it. Will see you again tomorrow for #5 - well hopefully tomorrow!