Madison Sanders Writes

Most people put their real names at the end of their blog post without a second thought. It hasn't been so easy for me. I created this blog when I was sixteen, but I took a long leave of absence when my health declined. I didn't think I could write about the pain I was feeling because I didn't fully comprehend everything myself. No one wants to read horribly depressing posts, so I didn't write. I also didn't want a reminder of those years because they are forever etched in my memory. Reading my thoughts and feelings would almost be too much. Since I was young, I was also naive and cautious. I knew that people could take advantage of me if I put too much information on my blog. Being a blogger is all about finding that balance. How much should I keep to myself and how much should I share? I created the user name writing4612 so that I could write without worry of stalkers. I'm older now and more mature. After much prayer and weighing the pros and cons, I've de

Granny and Papa had something that could hold our attention for hours. It was a golden tan color and we could erase all the evidence by wiping off our clothes. What was it that we darted for the second we jumped out of the car? The sand pile in the back yard. The best part about this sand pile was that we could sit on top of it. We thought we were kings and queens of our castle when we perched atop our sand pyramid. That's all good if you have no brothers and sisters. Me and Eli figured out early on that it was much better if we shared the sand pile. Eli thought it was hilarious to cover me in sand while in whimpered in protest. I pelted him with sand grenades in return. "Come inside, Eli and Madison!" Granny interrupted our thoughts with her distinctive call. We had other plans. We didn't budge. We laughed as we threw sand at each other. I was a sight to see because I had on a crisp white shirt. By this time, Granny was getting irritated. "If y'all don'

Mama and I were lured into this shop by the tantalizing smells. Bottles lined the glass front counter. Tangerine, Roasted Pecan, and Cotton Candy were begging to be opened. Mama lifted each one to smell it. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a red headed lady. She looked nice enough, but she was a sales woman after all. "Can I help you find something?" she said in her perky voice. "You just have to try the Tangerine perfume!" she said before Mama could respond. This lady reminded me of someone who had had too much caffeine that morning. I bit my tongue and kept walking. "Oh, Oh! Feel how good this feels on your face!" she said as she slathered an egg wash on my mom's face. "If we want it we will buy it. Please don't do that again" she said as she looked the sales lady in the eye. I went back to smell the roasted pecan. The smell was intoxicating, but I didn't know if I wanted to smell like roasted pecans day after day. Out of nowh

Summer time is like no other. While people still have to work, there is a relaxed atmosphere. Everyone savors those cool breezes that come at dusk. Kids dream up games and spend almost every waking moment playing as the sun envelops them with its warmth. Laughter is more crisp. Gardens abound with fresh vegetables. Gone are the days of monotonous school work. Calenders are quickly filled up with family barbecues, birthdays, and lake time. Summer is measured in laughs instead of seconds on a clock. Sometimes I wish I could bottle up that carefree feeling and reopen it when things become hard. Living rooms are turned into imaginary forts complete with a table and chairs. In the South, we fall asleep to the chirp of crickets and birds. The lake offers fun in the sun while cooling off. Kids beg parents to bring out the water slides and sprinklers. I don't know about you but a slip-n-slide is a must in the South. Adults compete against the kids to see who can go the farthest. Some end

Years have passed since she's spoken to him. She's older now and wants to make amends with people. Since landing her dream job as a lawyer, she's had time to think about things. Dominque Smithson figures there's no time like the present to start anew, but she starts doubting herself as she sits down to write. "How do I talk about everything that's happened in three years?!" Her head ached at the thought of it. Dominique writes a letter in the hopes that it will ease the tension. Smoothing the paper, she continues to let the words flow from her soul. After a few minutes, she realizes she's only scratched the surface of what she wants to say. Writing can be therapeutic, and it can also be torture. As Dominique seals the envelope, she hopes he will read it. She hopes he will see past his hurt and pain. In a moment of resolve, she sticks the letter in the mail, sending it on its journey. Though distance isn't great, their perception of each other cou

I voted today. I wasn't planning to post, but I've changed my mind. Each one of us has a voice, and if we don't voice our opinions, that voice will eventually be silenced. It will be drowned out by what the media says and what others say. [I masked my face because when I vote, my skin color or gender doesn't matter. I'm a person with a voice wanting to be heard in a sea of people.] You have to know what you believe. If you know what you believe, no one else can come in and sway you. Find your voice. Each time you speak up, it gets easier. You become more confident in yourself. I left the poll with a smile on my face because regardless of the outcome, I was heard. This quote sums up things perfectly, "I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do." -Edward Everett Hale We may not have a law degree that permits us to participate in Senate hearings, but each of us

I don't know about you, but names are important. When I'm scrolling through numerous blogs on a sidebar, I pick the ones that look interesting. Some just scream, "Read me!" Does that happen to any of you? I also click on the other blogs too. This is an equal opportunity blog. :) I thought I would share with you some unique and funny blog names. Names reveal a lot about people's personalities, don't you think? As I was laughing at some of these, I couldn't help but click on that title to find out more about the authors behind them. Sure enough, they were as bold, fun, (fill in the blank) as their blog names! Some people prefer to use their last name as a jumping off point for their blogs, which is perfectly fine. There are no rules when it comes to blogging...just be yourself. What I have found with these blogs is you can never judge a blog by it's blog title. When you read a blog you might normally pass over, you might be surprised to find you have a l

As I looked into my smudged mirror, it hit me. When the mirror is smudged, we don't see our true reflection. Those smudges distort reality. There is no way to see who you really are when the lens that you are looking through is dirty. Yes, this is an analogy, but we have all been there. Only when you make the choice to clean the glass will you see the true you. God wiped our "mirror" clean when he died on the cross for us. His precious blood covered any and all sins of humanity. As women we sometimes fall into the trap of self loathing. In other words, seeing your reflection in the mirror causes utter disgust. We have to realize when we let our reflection rule our lives, we can't be all that God has called us to be. How can we hate ourselves when God took away all of our excuses? That is essentially saying that God's sacrifice wasn't good enough. Genesis 1:27 says, "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he

We piled into the car and headed for the mountains. Cade's Cove and all of its adventures awaited us. The car bounded along on the gravel trail. Deer wandered all around, unafraid of the visitors. We were so excited, so we got out to walk around. Old fashioned churches with wooden pews dotted the landscape. I was intrigued by these buildings because I was transported to a simpler time and place. Back then, people made an effort to become a community. People did more things together. Very curious, we continued walking. We came upon an old building with a working water wheel. I loved this! Papa went ahead of us, carefully explaining how the corn was ground into flour. I could picture a woman laboring over that grinder just to get a little bit of flour. That was hard work. I had had enough of the walking for awhile, so we got back on the trail. I spotted several people fumbling for their cameras out of my eye. "Look, Papa! I wonder what those people are doing?" Then, I sa

I was recently tagged by Kylee from Life is a Canvas. I'm supposed to tell you where I see myself in 10 years. In 10 years, I'll be 30. Wow, that feels weird to type that! I see myself in a career that I love. What may surprise some of you is that I see myself out of the wheelchair by this time. I wasn't always in one, and I know with God's help I can get to that place again. I don't have the ability to predict the future(and I wouldn't want it), but I do know that the choices that we make today affect our lives tomorrow. I have goals and dreams, but I never want to be so set in my plans that God can't do what He wants to do in my life. If I don't get my book published by then, so be it. I haven't even written it yet. ;) Why? I guess I'm dealing with life right now. With me, I can't plan anything too far in advance. The rules say I'm supposed to tag ten other people. Gwen from Handbag Obessed Meg from

This picture shows my very last Fentanyl patch. I'm writing this post with the end goal in mind. I'm have been completely off the Fentanyl (and Dilaudid) since June 14, 2010. There have been people that seriously doubted whether or not this could be done. Heck, I'm not going to say this has been a leisurely walk in the park. I've cried, I've wondered when this would end. But, one thing never changed. Once we came off a dose month by month, I refused to go back. People reassured me saying it was OK, but I couldn't do it. I had to move forward with or without some people behind me. My mom has seen me at the best times and the worst. My physical therapist has been there sometimes voicing his opinion and other times silently supporting me in my quest to be me again. My church family has also been there for me. A hug or a word of encouragement has meant more than they will ever know. Even the praise and worship that leaps from the keyboard into the heart of the peop

I'm going through a major adjustment period. Since this blog is meant to chronicle my life, every post will not be funny or thought provoking. This blog will be real, though. Some days I don't have the strength to write. It's been a trying time these past few weeks, but God hasn't fell off the throne. I'm just having to dig my heels in one more time. When I feel like I can't take another step, I'm hit in the face with reality. How can I stop when God didn't stop? He hung on that cross. He accomplished what he sat out to do. I'm only on this earth for a brief time, and I plan to fulfill my purpose. God never promised life would be easy, but He did promise His grace would always be sufficient. It is in my moments of weakness that I find strength in what He has already done. So, I'm taking a few days off. I do have a post scheduled for Friday, though. EDIT: Blogger is having some issues with the comments. I can see them, but the number of comments i

I have a question. I've been thinking about creating a F@cebook page for this blog, but I don't want to do it if only a few are interested. Why? It takes time and effort to maintain another page. Do you think it would be worthwhile? Weigh in by participating in my poll! Blonde Duck, I got your comment, but I'm not sure why it didn't post.

Today is July 4th. Most people have a cookout then go back to their mundane lives. I see things from a different perspective, so I thought I would share my thoughts. My new wheelchair gives me independence. For 5 years, I tolerated a chair that was mediocre at best and certainly not made to sit in for long periods of time. With independence comes responsibility. When the papers were signed and the ink was drying, the chair was mine. I could do with it what I wished. Opportunities to move around my house with ease awaited me, but I had to push the button first. Likewise, the Declaration of Independence was signed 234 years ago, but its words shouldn't be taken lightly. The freedom and liberty that Jefferson spoke of came with a price. Most of us want to say, "It's the soldiers responsibility to protect us!" You are only partially right. As Americans, we have a responsibility to preserve our culture. Do we want to be remembered for our iPhOnes and fast paced life? Do we

My new chair is on the left. I just wanted to show the difference. This post has been anticipated for a long time. My new wheelchair arrived in one piece on Wednesday! I was so excited. I woke up with butterflies in my stomach because the day that I had only dreamed about was finally a reality. There it was. I could see it. I could touch it. Everyone can celebrate when you can see something with your own eyes, but many lose faith when things don't go the way you think they should. I'm living proof that good things come to those who wait. I had praised God for meeting my needs MONTHS before we even knew if the e-motion wheels would be approved. You see, these wheels are something special. They are so special that only a handful get approved each year. I made up my mind awhile back that it was OK if I didn't get the e-motion wheels. The main thing I needed was a better seat-anything else was just a bonus. I'm so excited for a seat that's specifically designed