Like many busy couples, the daily stresses and challenges of life sometimes leave one or the other feeling too tired and overwhelmed to notice just how great we have it. As we've mentioned many times in the past, our weekly "date nights" are the foundation for creating the relationship and life of our dreams. Every week, no matter how busy we get, we take the time to consciously stop and NOTICE how grateful we are.

Gratitude is also a part of our daily practice. From the time we wake to the time we go to bed each night, we look for loving and creative ways to celebrate and love one another and the world around us.

If you really knew us, you would know the first words out of our mouths in the morning are always words of celebration and gratitude ... "Good morning ... I am so grateful to be alive." The other might say, "I am grateful to share another day of life with you." You'd hear things such as, "I am grateful for the miracles we will witness or experience today. I am grateful for my health, our kids and most of all I am grateful to know our lives are making a difference." The list goes on and on.

It's been said that whatever you focus on grows. We can all make a case for what's wrong in the world; in our schools, our families, and our lives, and clearly we could all be right. Our question is, would you rather be right or would you rather be happy?

Our commitment is to notice what we can change and then do something about it. Focusing the majority of our time in gratitude and speaking about the moment-to-moment miracles and blessings found all around us, allows us to watch them grow as we speak.

Our dear friend Richard Carlson wrote a series of books, one of which was called Don't Sweat the Small Stuff and it's All Small Stuff. He lived his life committed to fostering an "Attitude of Gratitude." Recently, we attended his memorial service and it was abundantly clear that every person Richard had contact with felt very much the same as we did in his presence. Everyone there said they felt as though they were the most important person in the world to him ... "Richard's best friend." What better legacy could any of us leave?

Our Challenge for you is to stop throughout the day and NOTICE your thoughts, choices and actions. Do you spend more time complaining about everyone and everything or do you CHOOSE to focus on what is right in your relationships and in the world around you?

Do you ACT by letting people know that you love and appreciate them? Do you positively reinforce people, pay compliments and express your gratitude for the perfection and beauty in life and everyone around you?

The fundraiser will be held at the St. Francis-Westin Hotel in San Francisco from 11 am - 12:30 pm. This is an exciting time to learn about Challenge Day and support our mission, which is to provide youth and their communities with experiential workshops and programs that demonstrate the possibility of love and connection through the celebration of diversity, truth and full expression.

One young man said he quit his gang affiliation about nine months ago. He said, "I want my life to be different. I'm tired of seeing my own people killing each other, and I wanted a better life, but people judge me because of what I was and who I used to be, so now I don't have many friends except the ones who want me back into the gangs."

One of the Leaders asked the group to stand if they had a judgment about this young man when this day started. Most of the room stood up. Then the Leader said, "if your feelings have changed about him because of what he shared, step out and give him a hug." The young man was swarmed!!! The Leader kept emphasizing, "This is your new family. This is where you can get love and support."

I am so proud of this young man and am so grateful to Challenge Day for creating a day where kids can actually feel hopeful.

But aside from that, my ex boyfriend & I haven't really talked since we broke up. Now we talk and hug each other (so things got better). People from Challenge Day that I knew before that would just tell me "hi" ... actually hugged me and asked how I was doing ... people I never talked to till Challenge Day actually let it be known that they know me and that they'll be there ... so I just wanted to say... MAHALO NUI LOA! ALOHA WAU 'O CHALLENGE DAY! ALOHA!!!!!

Patrick and Andy, who first saw Challenge Day through the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) presentation in June 2006, have helped bring a life insurance, long and short-term disability and 401K plan for all our employees.

"A big thank you to all of you who braved the blizzard and freezing temperatures to work with our kids! We saw such amazing things with our students that day, and even yesterday it continued in the hallways. We can't wait to have our whole student body participate in April. Thank you so much for the incredible work that you do." (Teacher)

"It showed that all people are the same and if you listen close enough, you can hear the rest of the world breathing together." (Student)

"I think it will help me be a better parent." (Student)

"My favorite part was the oppression line crossing. I love how it showed people that you're not alone and that nobody's perfect, everybody has problems. When I got home, I was able to tell my mom some of my problems and I think she understands." (Student)

"Today (the day after Challenge Day) I saw so many people giving other people hugs and they weren't all friends." (Student)

Don't miss this opportunity to join us for a Next Step to Being the Change Workshop. While the April Next Step is full, you can register for May or one of the other workshops listed below.

Please take special notice ... there may be a workshop scheduled in your area. The Next Step to Being the Change workshop is a highly experiential, educational, and personal growth workshop that provides participants with the inspiration, hope, and compassion we all crave as humans. Originally designed for educators and students desiring to keep the spirit of Challenge Day alive in their schools, our Next Step to Being the Change workshop has become a powerful communication and connection tool for relationships of all kinds. Come play with us!

Important Dates

Next Step to Being the Change

Concord, CA
April 20 - 22 (FULL)
May 18 - 20
Contact Challenge Day Workshops Email

Ukiah, CA
March 30 - April 1
Contact Steve Ryals Email

Bassano, AB, CANADA
April 13 - 15
Contact joanne.medeiros@grasslands.ab.ca

Toledo, OH
July 13 - 15
Contact AmyC@accesstoledo.com

World of Change
Our 6th Annual Fundraiser
Saturday March 10, 2007
St. Francis-Westin Hotel in San Francisco from 11 am - 12:30 pm.

Our Circle Team has a lot to celebrate this month!

First, we'd like to welcome three new official Circles of Change! In Ohio, we are pleased to announce the Northeast Ohio Circle of Change in Cleveland. The founding members, Suzanne Miller and Kurt Forsthoefel, are long time supporters of Challenge Day; we are honored to have them join us in this more official role.

Second, from Colorado, the city of Denver is coming together, with friends both new and old, to form the Denver Metro Circle of Change. Denver's Circle Leader, Victoria Pilkington, and her team have already launched their first steps in a comprehensive plan to serve the entire Denver community.

Third, under the leadership of our friend of many years, Alan Comeau at Arcadia Hospital in Bangor, we are joined by the Pine Tree Circle of Change serving the state of Maine. We'll keep you updated about these dynamic teams as they move forward in creating the community of their dreams.

We also have a big bravo for our North Coast Circle of Change. The Circle was awarded two generous grants from the California Endowment totaling $25,000. The Circle will be putting these grants to good use next year as they continue to support their schools and community with Challenge Day programs.

This month we took some important steps towards creating recognition and support for our Circle communities by granting them priority booking for Fall 2007. To take advantage of this priority in the future, school coordinators please hook-up with those amazing Circle Leaders - together you make a powerful team. Keep looking for additional Circle benefits in the future. We've all got our thinking hats on.

As many of you know, we hold National Circle Calls the 3rd Thursday of every month at 4PM PT. A huge thank you to last month's Conference call speaker, Dr. Cassandra Joubert, Vice President of Community Investment at the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan. Dr. Joubert oversees the foundation's $35 million grant making program and was kind enough to share with us an insider's perspective for forming relationships with grant-making organizations. Her wisdom and expertise left our conference callers speechless - not an easy task!

Today, she is a powerful leader who has transformed the hurt she experienced as an immigrant student in the California educational system into a passion for making sure that every student feels safe, loved, and celebrated in our schools.

Bernice is fluently bi-lingual and came to Challenge Day with a wide range of experience in team development, leadership, and management. She is a passionate leader with a special ability to reach out to and support hurt teens.

If you really knew me:

• You would know I am passionately committed to Being the Change in every area of my life.
• You would know that I'm in love with love. I love my family and consider m y friends a part of it.
• You would know that I'm married and that we don't have any kids yet, maybe in the future.
• You would know that I love music, concerts, snowboarding, dancing, painting, traveling, and cosmetology.
• You would know that I'm really grateful for everything in my life, and that I love being a Challenge Day Leader and spreading love across the world.

Here are some hints about navigating the new site:

1. Want to order T-shirts? Click the SHOP link to go to the Challenge Day Store link or click on Get Involved > Take Our Challenge > Wear the Gear. The store also has its own domain, and is reachable at http://www.c hallengedaystore.com/.

2. Want to attend a Challenge Day near you? Click the CALENDAR link located under our logo. Please note: only days seeking outside facilitators are listed. The process for attending has been changed slightly, so if you find a day you wish to attend, you will need to contact the school coordinator directly.

3. Coordinators, watch for changes to our scheduling process. You'll find everything you need to know under Get Started > Bring a Challenge Day http://www.challengeday.org/get- started/bring-a-challenge-day.html. We are continuing to post new pages with revised policies and procedures, so please check this section often.

4. Donating to a local Circle of Change? Look under Get Involved > Make a Gift. You can reach our online donation page at: https: //secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.. On this page, there is a Designate Your Donation drop down where you will find all of our Circles of Change.