She Has a Heart for Haiti

Eliza and I recently returned from our first trip to Haiti... the trip was Eliza's dream come true. She claimed to have a heart for Haiti prior to ever going. I witnessed that heart in action and in truth when I saw her in Haiti. She does, indeed, have a heart for Haiti.

Our trip to Haiti included our spending time with the children in the orphanage adjacent to our guest house. The time we spent with those children is some of the most precious time of my life... not just because of the children themselves but also because of my child's unreserved love for them. She went in "no holds barred," heart and soul, no conditions... just pure love and passion.

We were with a group of 60 or so people. Eliza, 10 years old, was by far the youngest by at least 5 years. Being the youngest, though, was not a disadvantage for her. In fact, what I witnessed in her is the heart of a girl on a mission... a missionary, called by God to the country of Haiti.

I would venture to say that it's rare for a 10 year old to hear God's calling. I think it's rare for an adult to hear God's calling... or perhaps what's rare is for us to listen and follow God's calling. Eliza had no problem hearing, listening and following.

She touched our group of Americans in a way that literally floored me. The whole group knew her by name. Men and women encouraged her, loved on her and witnessed God's calling on her life.

There is so much more to tell, more details of our experiences both emotionally and spiritually, but what I most want to convey right now, is the call to hear, listen and follow.

Jesus tells us that we should have faith like that of a child. A child's faith is unclouded by Earthly distractions... eyes open, ears listening, heart fertile. Never have I personally experienced a more powerful witness for God's will than I did while watching Eliza.

Oh, that I, like Eliza, like a child, would be a simple vessel for Christ... filled up, running over, spilling out everywhere.

Stuck in the Middle

In the mid to late 80's, my high school friends and I used to eat at a pizza joint called Mr. Gatti's. Mr. Gatti's served traditional pizza fare, including the daily, all-you-can-eat, buffet. On one particular outing for pizza, I walked up to place my order and was asked if I wanted a drink. This was long before there were free refills and immediate access to the fountain or any sizes other than small, medium and large. So, what you ordered is what you got, and I ordered a medium Coke.

The employee taking my order looked at me and said, "We don't have medium. Medium is for people who can't make up their minds." Excuse me, I thought to myself, and I repeated in my mind just what the cashier had said to me, medium is for people who can't make up their minds. For a moment I couldn't say anything. I was embarrassed by his rude reply and offended by his nerve, but "no mediums" meant that I had to decide between large and small. I don't remember which size I chose, but, for some reason, I have never forgotten what this person said to me.

In reality, I suppose the Mr. Gatti's guy was right. Medium is for people who can't make up their minds. I didn't want as much as a large, but I wanted more than a small. "Medium" is the perfect compromise, though.   I thought about medium is for people who can't make up their minds a lot after that incident...at the time, less philosophically and more emotionally because I was just offended, nothing else.

However, as I've aged, I've thought about and considered this response more on philosophical level. Recently, my husband and I talked about it, and he said, "We actually live our lives in the middle, sometimes pursuing the materialistic and other times trying to simplify (para)"  Is "medium" less than a compromise and more of an easy way out? Am I truly stuck to medium in more ways than one? I think I am, and being in the middle has created a huge internal struggle... I've lost my desire to chose medium. So, where do I really stand?

I think of the middle as being a valley with a steep climb up to either side. One side is labeled "Large" and the other is labeled "Small."At the top of large is a life lived in over-the-top extravagance, perhaps the life of some of the rich and famous, closed-fisted, self-focused. The Small side, in contrast, is humble, not boastful, a life lived with open hands and an open heart, unswayed by Western Civilization's bulldozer focused at the top of the Large slope. While each slope is difficult to travel, neither is unattainable, but it's easier to linger in the Middle, taking steps up each side every now and then, and this is where I find myself. My reality is that I am tired of the Middle, and I'm left to choose Large or Small, but history has proven that I change my mind going back and forth, and finally landing in the Middle, again.

I've attempted to partially climb the Large slope so many times and along the way, I developed a silent, but deadly, "keep up with the Joneses" mantra. It's no secret, a lot of us live this way. If we didn't, there would be no one to keep up with. In reality, it's impossible to actually keep up with the Joneses unless you are yourself the Joneses.

I live in a beautiful home in a terrific neighborhood, but I've wanted a bigger house, more land. I've driven hip mom-taxis, but I've wanted ones with higher status. I have a closet full of clothes, but I've wanted more. I could go on, but you get the idea... I've succumbed to the tune of "more is more" more times than I'd like to admit. Quite frankly, it's exhausting and unfulfilling and each time I return to climb the Large side, I rediscover that more is not more of anything meaningful, just more. So, I slide back down to the Middle. Honestly, I don't want to make it all the way to the top of Large, but sometimes I think that half-way up would be ok...see what's happening here?

The Small slope allures me with its unselfishness, peace and contentment. Unfortunately, it's hard to climb up the Small side with all of the luggage I've accumulated from my climb up the Large. There have been plenty of times when I've ravaged through my closet getting rid of "everything", only to realize my closet was still full of clothes. I've given stuff away, had garage sales, posted on Craigslist and ebay only to turn around and replace it through the years with something else. The climb up Small is tough. My baggage from the Large weighs me down, and I get pulled back to the Middle where things seem more comfortable when in reality there's no true contentment in maintaining the status quo. The push and pull is exhausting.

Sometimes, I think there is a workaround to Small. If I lived in a smaller house in a smaller town, drove an older car, home schooled my kids and existed on no one else's schedule, terms or expectations other than the parameters of my own family, then it would be easy to live Small...duh! However, abandoning my present life and responsibilities isn't truly living Small. It's avoiding the presence of Large so I don't have to deal with the external pressure of actually choosing.

Maybe airing my own internal struggle in a public forum is a step in the right direction, but allowing myself to be vulnerable doesn't change the direction of my climb, it acknowledges where I am right now. I know, by the grace of God, that I will survive just fine in the Middle, make a difference even, but I can't deny the obvious pull to make a choice. The Middle is for people who can't make up their minds.  I don't want to be one of those people anymore. I want Small. The slope will be steep, the path will be rocky and confusing at times, but I won't be alone. Thank the Lord that He knows the way. Wanna climb with me?

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

I was thinking this morning about the recent additions to our Western vernacular... reduce, reuse, recycle, global footprint, global impact, etc. With a heavy concentration on the environment and how our daily habits influence the Earth's environment for good or bad, we are often reminded of the need to reduce our impact.

While I'm all for being environmentally sensitive, as a mother, wife, daughter and friend, I'm actually trying to increase the impact that I have on my environment in an effort to leave a lasting footprint, one that matters... reduce my selfishness, reuse the forgiveness that I've received and recycle the kind of love that is without condition.

Selfishness is tough to get away from, especially in a world where "self is king." It's hardly possible to reduce in America when our focus is me, me, me and more, more, more.

Forgiveness is hard to reuse when we see so many who won't forgive, which again goes back to being selfish. How can you forgive if you are selfish? Forgiving is based on our ability to become selfless.

Love is hard, if not impossible, to recycle if we look to the world to show us how. Unconditional love is not a standard set by our society. Again, we have to go back to being selfless if we want to love well.

I'm not saying that we won't find selfless, forgiving and loving people in our world. Of course, we will. Hopefully, you're one of them or you're working hard to be one of them.

We can only rely on one example...the One who left the greatest global impact. If we look to Jesus as our guide, and we seek to emulate Him, our own footprint on the world will become increasingly difficult to distinguish from His.

Why? Because Jesus was the greatest environmentalist ever. He knew how to reduce, reuse and recycle from the beginning. He is selfless. He is forgiving. He loves without condition.

Think about it... if we were all to use His example as our modus operandi, would our environment be suffering so much? Would our world be hurting so much? Would we be working so hard to reduce our stuff, reuse our bags, recycle our plastic? Would our focus be less on us and more on Him? I'm willing to bet it would.

Who's your Faucet?

Do you ever ask yourself, "What am I supposed to do now? How am I going to fill my cup? Who is going to fill my cup?" I find myself asking it a lot.

I respond quickly to praise, but what if I'm not praised? What if no one notices what I've done? What if I'm too exhausted and tired to accomplish much? What if I don't blog for months? What if I don't have a house to tear down and rebuild after a flood? What if I don't have a trip to plan, a purchase to make, a home improvement project to organize, a company to run...What then? Am I good for nothing?

Our world tells us that in order to be successful, you need to be busy. You need to be on a track to a brilliant career; you need to write the next #1 song; you need to be the mom most involved in your kid's school; you need to be a mom and HAVE a career outside the home; you need to be a mom and NOT have a career outside the home; you need to...you need to...you need to. The list goes one and on. You fill in the blank. The world defines worth and success by what we do and how much of it we do...the more the better.

The Lord commands us in Deuteronomy 30:15 "to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you..." He also says,  "(I have shown) you, O man and woman, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8)

We have the instructions for living a full life of increase and goodness. We have been given simple, yet complex commands from our God about how we should live. The commands are simple because they are straightforward. They are complex because His commands do not align with what our society, culture, nation tells us we should be doing. God's commands go against the grain of "more, more, more" and, instead, say, "less, less, less." "Less is more" and is a hard concept to convince ourselves of. What if we stopped trying to convince ourselves, and, instead, just tried to obey God, act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with our God?

What if that is all we had to do today? Get up. Try hard not to sin. Treat others with kindness and mercy and walk with the Lord ALL DAY. If our day were filled with the simplicity of loving God, ourselves and others well, would there not be a change in the daily pressure to do more, have more, be more? What if we followed God's will for our lives and "always (tried) to be kind to each other and to everyone else. (Were) joyful always; pray(ed) continually; (and gave) thanks in all circumstances"? (I Thes. 15-18).

I'm not saying that we don't need to take care of our responsibilities at home, at work, to our friends and spouses. I'm saying, what if we took care of our responsibilities in a different way? What if we walked confidently in God's ability to provide and to use us for His great pleasure? Surely, He would direct us to get done what needs to be done, to take care of who or what needs to be taken care of.

What a huge relief that would be, right? We could let go of our anxiety? We could be kind no matter how others treated us? We could always be joyful? We would pray all of the time? We would give thanks even when our circumstances were less than awful? Could we be peaceful and content in God's love for us?

Of course, the answer to these questions is a resounding "YES!" Again, though, we won't do it. We push the thoughts of pleasing God aside and pour ourselves into pleasing others and expecting others to recognize what we do and convince us of our worth. Why do we do that, especially, when so many of us know...WE KNOW...that we aren't supposed to live a life based on what we think others think we should do or be?

I am guilty of, believing that you give me worth. If you are impressed with something that I can do...If you are amazed at how well I accomplish everything on my plate...If you praise me, then I will feel satisfied...except when you don't praise me. What then? That's when I crash. If I don't get some kind of positive reinforcement or praise, I am good for nothing, which is, of course, a BIG FAT lie! It's Satan's favorite lie, and he uses the sin of the world to convince us of its truth.

When the Liar plants the questions and encourages feelings of worthlessness through the seeds of self-doubt, is when the he has the opportunity to sabotage our thoughts. He has so many clever tools all around us, and there is no doubt he will use them. HE WILL USE THEM. He will hit us over the head with the lie of worthlessness.

We must flee the enemy, push aside these thoughts to the point that when they re-enter, and they will, we just laugh and say, "I know that trick, and I won't fall for it! I have a God who loves me with an everlasting love. His love never ends. His Spirit intercedes for me when I am weak and when I am strong. My God has called me by my very own name. I am His and He is mine. God's love for me gives me worth beyond measure, exceptional, brilliant worth. I am worthy only because of His mercy, and because of His mercy, I am worthy." God's love does not change like the shifting sands. It does not come and go based on my performance. God's love is permanent and unconditional.

Let's encourage one another to live a life confident in our worth to God. There is no other opinion that matters. There is no boss, no spouse, no friend, no parent, NO ONE who gets to fill our cups except Jesus. The good news is that He has filled our cups to overflowing. Like a cup held under a running faucet, He fills us to overflowing. He will fill us to the point that we will, as my friend and author, Nancy Guthrie says, "slosh out Jesus everywhere,"  The challenge before us is that we must stand under the Right Faucet...the faucet of Living Water, the Spring that gives Life everlasting and without measure. The question stands, "Who's your faucet?" The answer, though, is up to us.

His Plan is Perfect

This Sunday, we were challenged by our pastor to read through the Flood narrative in Genesis 7 and study what elements of God's character are revealed in it. Our pastor gave us a few defining elements to being with: God hates sin. God always does what He says He will do. When God closes a door, only God can open it again. Other character defining elements were left for us to uncover ourselves. 

We've been going through Genesis for many months now. Ironically, perhaps providentially, we began studying Noah and the Flood narrative along about the time that Nashville experienced its own deluge of water: The Flood of 2010. I think because of my own experience with the flooding here, the impact of what Noah went through became evermore real to me. I'm sure others feel the same. The shear impact of what water can do to a place has forever left an indelible imprint in my mind.

So, it's from the perspective of my own walk through "our" flood, that I looked through the lens at Noah and gleaned my own thoughts about God and His character... on trait in particular.

What struck a chord with me most is "waiting" and its prevalence throughout Biblical faith. Waiting is especially poignant to me in relation to our flood and how to direct my mother-in-law. I do not believe there are many callings more difficult than the challenge of waiting because waiting involves blind faith and dependance and trust in God's ability to provide even in the midst of the unexplainable.

I believe that The Flood Narrative reveals, through waiting, that the character and nature of God purposefully follows His own Divine plan and no other. Noah not only had to wait, but he was also challenged to trust that God had a plan...a perfect one...better than anyone one else's. 

In every situation and circumstance, in regard to man and beast, God has a plan. It is His own plan, and His plan is always in our best interest. The challenge, then, is not only to wait, but to also trust in God's ability to steer us down a path of open doors and to steer us away from the path of those He has closed. 

As our pastor said, only God can open a door that He, Himself, has closed. How often do I find myself tugging at the handle of a closed door, choosing paths for myself based on my own intuition, and forging ahead in my own blind desire to have control?...once is more than enough. Unfortunately, I've repeated this behavior more times than I'd care to admit. 

However, my saving grace, our saving grace, is that God allows us, woos us even, back to His path, His plan for our lives. If God's character exhibits nothing short of perfection, then how much more perfect and absolute should His ability be to provide a perfect plan for us?

The days of Noah, his family and the animals were ordered by God. The amount of rain and the number of days it rained were perfectly calculated by God. The days that the ark rested on the mountain top were precise, according to God's plan... God did not allow the rains to persist longer than necessary to fulfill His plan to destroy the Earth with water. God did not allow Noah to leave the ark any sooner than the Earth itself was prepared by God to receive him...God does not miscalculate. Miscalculation is not a part of His character; however, perfection is who He is by nature and in character...His perfection applies to all that He is and to all that He does.

Lesson learned? Perhaps for today. What I know, though, is that I will try my own plan again while I'm waiting for His. I know this because I know of my human tendency toward fallibility, despite my soul's desire to follow God's plan. I also know, though, that God will direct my steps, and His direction always leads back to Him and to His plan for my life.

Throughout the history of the Bible, God reminds us that, "The LORD of hosts has sworn: 'As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand'..." (Isaiah 14:24) He has also promised that, He knows the plans He has for us, declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11) 

His plan is perfect. His plans will never fail.

Going to Extremes...

Dear Casting,

I was forwarded Extreme Makeover Home Edition's recent press release requesting nominations of a Nashville family in need of a home makeover as a result of the recent devastating floods. There are so many in our city and state who are deserving, but because of my relationship to one of the victims, her need and the example of strength and character that she represents, I cannot go without submitting her name and story.

My mother-in-law, Dolores Donahue, is a 78 y/o widow who lives in the Bellevue suburb of Nashville, one of the hardest hit areas of the flood. Dee has been widowed for 9 years and for the several years, one of her daughters has lived in the upstairs of her River Plantation duplex, a primarily elderly and retired population.

In 1994, Dee and her husband, Don, moved from Missouri and purchased their retirement home in Nashville to be close to their four grandchildren. Big Don, as he was affectionately called, passed away in 2001 from complications with Diabetes. In 2008, Dee's sister and best friend, passed away in St. Louis. Over the years, Dee has had to deal with various illnesses, the inability to sleep well and many health issues including Meniere's Disease. Through all of this she maintains a positive attitude, never complains and keeps a close relationship with her three children who live in Nashville and her four adoring grandchildren who call her GrammaDee. 

Although officially retired, Dee works part time at Cracker Barrel and is the best salesperson in the gift shop. You can't possibly leave without purchasing something from her! In her spare time, Dee works diligently to create lasting memories by making beautiful scrapbooks for herself and for others. She turned her husband's bedroom into her scrapbook room after he passed away. She is always thinking of someone else and how she can bring him or her joy. She is a planner and never forgets a birthday, anniversary or any occasion for a gift. She remembers what everyone loves, and her gifts of love reflect just that.

Unfortunately, the Nashville Flood of  2010, has left a terrible mark on our city. Dee is without a home and has only water-logged and ruined scrapbooks and photo albums... remnants of albums filled with a lifetime of memories -- from her childhood in St. Louis, to the images of her children growing up in Columbia, MO and to her grandparent years in Nashville.  

Dee owned her home and its contents outright and has had no mortgage to worry about. When she and Big Don custom built and purchased their duplex, she was told that flood insurance was not needed. Unfortunately, those words have come back to haunt us (and so many). At 78, her life has been turned upside down...

Early Sunday morning, May 2, 2010, Elaine Donahue, woke Dee up to evacuate her River Plantation home. The flood waters had reached their front door, and they needed to get out right away. Elaine literally saved Dee's life, and they made it safely to her daughter and son-in-law's home. As the rains continued to pour on Sunday, we were unaware of just what was happening in Dee's neighborhood. Although the rains ended Sunday night, the water in Nashville continued to rise to exponential proportions. On Monday, May 3, we were still unable to return to Dee's home. Literally, there were jet skis seen motoring past the tops of the homes.

Sadly, we were unable to get back to Dee's home until Tuesday, May 4, 2010 after it had been under 6 feet of water for 48 hours. When we opened the door to her home that day, we gasped and no one could stop crying. Truly, the scene was horrible... everything ransacked by filthy flood waters, mud & silt marking the water line at about 6 feet, furniture tossed about the house like it was nothing... devastating. The first thing we looked for was Big Don's ashes. Although wet, we found them and the urn that held them.

After the initial shock and glad recovery of Big Don, we began working right away to remove all of the water-logged furniture and memories. Volunteers came to help us throughout the week. We took the children out of school to help. Friends took their children out of school to help, and in a week's time, we were able to gut her home of everything on the first floor. In Dee's neighborhood, because of its duplex design and row-like housing plat, the scene became familiar from one end of the row to the other... heartbreaking. Lives and memories piled 8 feet high along the roadway sorted into piles of metal, wood, and "household".

The scene in Bellevue mimics so many scenes across our state. Were it not for the willing hearts and helping hands of volunteers, I'm afraid that Dee's and so many other homes would still be filled with water. Dee lost most all of the contents of her home. We were able to recover some items, but most of the furniture was water logged and split. We had to use a sledgehammer on some of it just to get the drawers open. All of her electronics and appliances were ruined, and we were only able to salvage some of her clothing. Most of the water that came into these homes was sewage filled and bacteria laden -- not something you can just rinse off.

Today, we are trying to help Dee figure out how to rebuild. We have applied for government assistance and are working to make sure that her name is in every assistance program possible. FEMA sent Dee a check for about $15,000.00; however, this is less than a third of what it will cost to rebuild her home, not to mention furnish it and clothe her. FEMA declared her home "livable"... it's not livable until it's rebuilt. There are no walls, no electricity, no water, doors that won't close and broken windows.

At any rate, as her family, it is our desire to keep Dee from going into debt to rebuild what she once owned. These are supposed to be her Golden Years. She receives Social Security and has a small amount of retirement savings, but the last thing that we want is for her to be worried about losing her retirement and how she will afford to rebuild.  I have helped our children who call Dee, GrammaDee, build a website to raise $50,000 so that Dee can have a home again. It's a monumental task. (www.GivetoGrammaDee.com). We cannot do it without help.

Please seriously consider, Dee Donahue, as a candidate for Extreme Makeover Home Edition. She is so deserving of the help. She is a selfless gem of a woman. When you meet her, you will understand why we love her so. 

As you consider Dee, please also consider the elderly neighborhood of River Plantation where Dee lives. Your program could certainly rebuild a whole row of duplexes that were ruined by the flood. It would be a big task, but the houses are small; the people are in great need, and your program can garner resources like no program I've ever seen. (As a side note: Dee's attached neighbor's passed away a year ago. Their home has been on the market for almost as long. We also gutted it b/c it's condition had a huge impact on Dee's home. We don't know if it will be rebuilt.)

Below are some photos, and the link to our website is www.GivetoGrammaDee.com. The website is full of photos and includes a TV clip of Dee being interviewed after the flood.. Thank you for your consideration of her and the elderly community of River Plantation.

With Sincere Gratitude,

Laura Lyn Donahue

Help us with flood relief

www.GivetoGrammaDee.com

Where are You?

Dear President Obama and First Lady,

I am writing to you today on behalf of the greater Nashville/Franklin community and our recent flood disaster.

First, let me say thank you to President Obama for providing federal assistance through FEMA. This flood adversely affected so many thousands of people and so many were without flood insurance.

I don't know a family that was not touched in some way by the disaster either first hand, through a relative, a neighbor or a friend. The flood did not discriminate in its dissemination and destruction. People on all income levels, in all parts of our city have been left without homes and with their belongings and water-soaked remnants of their lives piled high along neighborhood streets.

My 78 y/o mother-in-law lost the whole first floor of her home. I, like so many others, have been working tirelessly to gut the homes of our loved ones. Strangers and friends alike have helped with these efforts, and it is no small task. Men, women and children working shoulder to shoulder helping to carry each other's burdens is a scene throughout thousands of homes across our great city and state.

While Nashville and some of our surrounding communities have had an influx of volunteers from neighboring states, help from the Red Cross and United Way as well as the presence of FEMA, I must say that there is a feeling of abandonment amongst our community by the federal government and the media.

We are living in a catastrophe. The scenes take my breath away. We have suffered a national disaster of magnificent proportions. You may have seen our flooded city on television, but you have not witnessed the mountains of our friend's shredded possessions, splintered furniture, muddied photographs, memories and lives piled high along our suburban streets. You have not witnessed the volunteer spirit reigning across our cities and towns from one end of the state to the other. You have not witnessed our suffering or our efforts to put our friends, family and strangers back on their feet.

No one can witness an event on television. It's impossible to witness destruction through an email or photos on a Face Book page. The newspaper can do no justice to the peril we have befallen. No letter to Anderson Cooper, no tweet to Oprah and no op ed in the New York Times can communicate the human experience. It is impossible.

True compassion comes through touching, seeing, hugging, holding and loving our fellow men, women and children. Compassion does not come through the pronouncement of our area as a national disaster. If anything, declaring 27 of our 95 counties a national disaster is warrant enough for a visit to see the hurting, to show the support of our government, to acknowledge that we are not alone in our suffering and in our efforts.

Whether or not your administration chooses to visit our great state is, obviously, not for me to decide, but I do feel it my duty to express to you that I, a native Nashvillian, feel let down. This is not a political plea. This is not a partisan ploy. Simply said: there is honor in seeing your president and first lady walk through your streets, shake the hands of the hurting... validating our state as important in the eyes of our federal government and in the eyes of our nation. It's not too much to ask. It's not too much to expect. In fact, it's not too late.

Neglecting a visit to the Volunteer State, forgoing a walk through our debris strewn suburban streets, and missing this moment in the history of our nation would be a shame. Come visit Tennessee. Witness our destruction; be moved by our ability to pull ourselves up by the bootstraps; affirm our children who have given as much of themselves as any adult. Attest to the strength, honor and valor of the next generation.

You are missing so much. Will Tennessee be okay if you don't come? Of course, our cities, towns and countryside will blossom again, the mud-ridden landscapes will wash clean, homes will be rebuilt, and lives will get back on track. We will bounce back and be stronger because of our sufferings. We will love better, prioritize differently, live life more fully and stand solid in community.

You, however, as President and First Lady will have missed out. There will be no Tennessee national disaster history in your term, only a record of disaster declaration. There is nothing personal in making an announcement. There is no personal story for your children or your grandchildren. There is only a 30 minute spot and a few media mentions on our 500 year flood. I doubt that will be enough for the history books.

Be that as it may, Tennessee will forge upward and onward, standing proud as The Volunteer State and carrying with it our own history as told by those who witnessed and experienced our national disaster and our private recovery. We are Nashville. We are Tennessee.