Communication With A Twist

Great example of Communication

Well worth the watch to the end.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OINStsPwgQ4

Posted by Christina on December 30th, 2008

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Father of the Century

This year instead of a communication tip e-mail, I decided to send my dad’s poem out to my list. The responses and stories I am getting back are incredible. 37 so far - humans writing to me about what matters in their life. Thanks dad, although you passed 4 years ago - you still have impact. The poem, as I posted last year, is below with a little context at the end.

Happy holidays.

Christmas 1973 a poem by my dad

December 2008

Christmas this year
Should cost at least
A thousand dollars.

It should be
In the Ideal Bar & Grill
On 163rd and St. Nicholas
Waiting for the first
Tattered little boy
To come in selling
Tomorrow’s morning papers
Roughing up his hair,
Giving all his papers away
And giving him
A hundred dollar bill.

It should be
Walking through the
Bowery,
Finding the drunk
Shivering in the dark doorway
And giving him,
Instead of a religious tract
Or lecture,
A hundred dollar bill.

It should be walking,
Down Beale Street,
Stopping the first
Poor black child,
Giving him a smile
And a hundred dollar bill.

It should be
In Albuquerque.
Not a donation to a fund,
But taking the time to find
The sad-eyed Chicano child,
Taking him to a toy store
And letting him run riot.
Picking up the tab, the
toys and him and
To take them to
Wherever or to whatever
His home may be,

And leaving him the change
Of a hundred dollar bill.

It should be in San Diego
Out on the wharf,
With the old fisherman
Who mends nets
Because the tuna
Don’t run for him anymore.
A “Vaya con Dios”
And a hundred dollar bill.

It should be
In a Santa Monica Bar,
Smiling at the tired barmaid
Who came to the coast
To be a star
And only found reality,
Giving her conversation,
Respect,
And a hundred dollar bill.

It should be in
A Nob Hill restaurant.
Giving the maitre d’
A smile. And the busboy,
Who no one has noticed
All year,
A hundred dollar bill.

It should be
With a little old lady
In San Francisco’s Mission
Street
Selling flowers, Late at night
In the Tenderloin
Taking all her
Wilted posies,
Giving her a kiss
And a hundred dollar bill.

It should be
In Seattle’s skid row
Down near the Totem Pole
In Pioneer Square,

Giving the startled
Indian panhandler
A measure of returned pride
And a handshake
And a hundred dollar bill.

It should be the last saved
For the thief
Anywhere,
Who needs it worse
Than anyone,
Not just the money
But the need to
Be superior to someone.
Let him steal from me
A hundred dollar bill.

But most of all…
To have any value at all,
Let Christmas Day find me
Broke,
With empty pockets
Hanging inside out,
Still
In
Love
With
Man.

By Robert H. Harbridge, 1973

Note: This poem was written in 1973 (in case you worried about it not using the right PC language). The writer,
my dad, had lost his son the year before writing this poem and had just been diagnosed with Parkinsons Disease.
And still he could see what matters most.

We hope you are holding onto your happiness and faith no matter what is happening around you.
Look around–there’s extraordinary people in this world… you. Happy Holidays.

Christina Harbridge

& the Allegory team
Allegory, Inc.

Posted by Christina on December 19th, 2008

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Quote of the year

“Semantics is cold comfort when it comes to humanity.”

An incredible quote that just rolled off the tongue of John Stewart.
http://www.couragecampaign.org/page/s/ThankYouJon

Posted by Christina on December 18th, 2008

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The most inspiring thing I have seen this year

http://vimeo.com/993998

Posted by Christina on December 16th, 2008

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A nice quote sent to me today

“Those who fear they have no faith, should not fear. It is those who have no faith and do not fear: who have no faith. For the one who fears believes enough to fear, but wants to love” -St. Sebastian

Posted by Christina on December 16th, 2008

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Show and Tell

My best friend, her husband and their baby are visiting from Florida for a few weeks. My 3 year old is in love with Tesla, the 5 month old. On the way to preschool this morning he said, “I can’t bring Tesla to school today mommy……”

“Hmm. You are right.”

“…because it isn’t show and tell.”

Laughed until coffee went through my nose. Note to self: do not interrupt your son in the morning…. priceless.

We do that a lot. We interrupt. (Insert “i” in that “we”) statement. I notice I am doing it more than ever - the ‘busier’ I think I am. Trying to get folks to get to the point so I can rush on to nail an 8 foot lighted star to the side of my house. Of course there is that 9 foot inflatable santa that we just HAD to have too.

Running in place. Interrupting. Hurrying.

The last 24 hours I made the commitment that I was not going to interrupt for 24 hours. It was incredible. Amazing….

(I was home sick alone 75% of the time.. fyi)

Posted by Christina on December 11th, 2008

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Mistakes make things more interesting

Columbus and Broadway..outside… The unveiling of Brian Goggin and Dorka Keehn’s “The Language of Birds”

My son Sebastian asleep in his car seat with wheels. Each piece of sculpture way up over head covered with black cloth- individually wrapped. The Marching band appears - my son wakes up just as one of the black clothes gets stuck on a sculpture. Really stuck. The audience waits in anticipation.

Brian Goggin, artist and obvious rock climber, scales a two-story ladder to remove the black cloth and slides down. The ladder is held by the crowd. It appears dangerous. It is very dramatic.

The crowd cheers. My son starts screaming “that is my daddy’s ladder.. that is my daddy’s ladder..” (It was, weird how kids know these things- it was.)

The remaining cloths are removed by some of the The Extra Action Marching Band members… in matching outfits.

My son starts yelling, “Momma… those girls don’t have any clothes on!!!”

It is hard to explain to a three year old thongs with bead ’skirts’… I did a fair job answer the question “why“

http://www.metaphorm.org/pages/portfolio/LanguageBirds.html

The point of this post: when things don’t go the way we planned when presenting GO WITH IT. The drama of the unveiling made the audience CHEER. Several people behind me wondered if it was all a part of the performance.

Nice.

Posted by Christina on December 1st, 2008

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For men only

http://bewareofthedoghouse.com/video.aspx

This is a great example of a company who knows how to market. Bravo!

Posted by Christina on December 1st, 2008

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Archive for December, 2008

Great example of Communication

Father of the Century

Quote of the year

The most inspiring thing I have seen this year

A nice quote sent to me today

Show and Tell

Mistakes make things more interesting

For men only

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