Connecting the Dots Mission Possible: The Talking Information Center

...Because believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart even when it leads you off the well worn path; and that will make all the difference."-Steve Jobs

"As it turns out, the only job we have available right now is with VIST. The mental health walk in coordinator job just got filled," the assistant chief of social work Jim Blair told me after my interview at the VA Outpatient Clinic in November 1988.

"But I have no experience working with people who are visually impaired," I replied.

"We'll train you," Jim said.

My favorite job in my social worker career was as the Visual Impairment Services Team Coordinator at the VA. I could use my marketing/public relations background with my masters degree in social work. My veterans taught me and I supported them in their adjustment to vision loss. We took field trips together and they opened my eyes to what it means to live life with strength and courage coping with the loss of the gift of sight.

Part of my job in helping veterans cope with vision loss was to make referrals to community resources that would support them to feel as independent and empowered as they could.

The Talking Information Center's mission is to broadcast information to inspire, empower and motivate the print impaired community. It was a way for my veterans to have access to newspapers, periodicals, consumer information and a wide range of programming through a radio that only required an on/off and volume button.

Fast forward to May 5, 2014 when through a friend of a friend's Facebook feed I discover that a visually impaired runner qualifies for Boston!

Randy Pierce went on to be a guest on The Talking Information Center's Mission Possible Show. Randy's work supports the New Hampshire Association for the Blind and Guiding Eyes for the Blind. I tweeted about his interview.

TIC reached out to me and asked if I would like to be a guest on Mission Possible.

On Monday, I took a tour of the agency that had made a tremendous difference in the lives of so many of my veterans. Sarah and John shared with me that a listener survey indicated that one of their favorite programs was the reading of the supermarket circulars each week so they could express their preferences to their significant others of what they would like to buy on sale each week. It's the little things in life that can make such a difference between feeling victimized by life's circumstances and feeling empowered to manage whatever life may set before us.

Sarah had done her research and posed questions that would allow me to share my journey and my message of healing, hope and possibility with ease.

She had covered the 2014 Boston Marathon for TIC and met members of Team With a Vision of Massachusetts Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired. She mentioned on air and off how inspiring it is to watch runners cross the finish line of the Boston Marathon. I could see that a spark was lit within her. She knew that if I had the courage and fortitude to run the Boston Marathon, so could she.

Coincidentally, I worked closely with the Mass Association for the Blind when I worked at the VA only it was called Vision Foundation at the time. One of my dear sweet veterans was a volunteer there for many, many years.

I am now connected with visually impaired athletes on Facebook and in real life.

I am thrilled to be going to Randy's Peak Potential Gala on 11/22.

It's beautiful to watch the dots connect as the beautiful tapestry of our lives is revealed.

You can listen to the podcast of my interview on Sound Cloud Mission Possible - Mary McManus.

My memoir, "Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility" is now available on Amazon.

"Wait, I have one more goal," Mary McManus told her personal trainer in February of 2008 shortly after coming out of her toe up leg brace. "I want to run the Boston Marathon for Spaulding Rehab Hospital." Mary traded in her polio shoes for running shoes and embarked on the journey of a lifetime. Mary McManus was at the height of her career as a VA social worker when she was told by her team at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital’s International Rehab Center for Polio in December of 2006 that she needed to quit her job if she had any hope of preventing the progression of post polio syndrome, a progressive neuromuscular disease. In “Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility” Mary takes you on her seven year healing odyssey as a survivor of paralytic polio and trauma from her diagnosis, to taking a leap of faith to leave her award winning career at the VA to heal her life and follow her passion as a poet and writer. You’ll experience her trials, tribulations and triumphs as she trains for and crosses the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and discovers the opportunity for healing in the wake of new trauma: the suicide of her nephew in 2011, and the aftermath of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings. This is Mary's journey of coming home to her human form free from the influences of the ghastly ghostly invaders who had invaded her sacred earthly home. Her memoir includes journals and blog posts from her seven year healing odyssey. This is her journey of transformation and her message of healing, hope and possibility.

I donate 50% of royalty payments through on line sales to The One Fund to help Boston Marathon survivors and their families. Copies are also available at Brookline Marathon Sports. $5 of each book sold at Marathon Sports is donated to The One Fund.

The Grace in the Running Community

After contracting paralytic polio at the age of 5, I was in a full leg brace. Definitely one of the lucky ones to not be in an iron lung and to be able to walk again, I struggled to physically keep up with my brother and my friends. Kids being kids, they'd take off and leave me in the dust while I lugged my leg brace along as best I could. This was the fuel for my Type A, overachieving, relying solely on my intellect personality until I hit the wall in my life in the summer of 2006.

Back into a leg brace, using a wheelchair at times for mobility and facing a grim future, the first poem I wrote, Running the Race, in the dark night of my soul in February 2007 used the metaphor of running. I had never run a day in my life and never owned a pair of running shoes. Something in my soul drew me to running. What a treasure I found in the running community.

My first 5 mile race, the Marathon Sports 5 Miler in July, 2008, was when I discovered what the running community is all about. While I struggled with all of my internal demons and negative self talk, the Marathon Sports Family was preparing to welcome me as I crossed the finish line - last!

We celebrated on Facebook with Thor (an appropriate name for him) after he ran his 100th marathon at this year's Boston Marathon. He went on to be the sighted guide for Randy Pierce as Randy, a totally blind runner and founder of 2020 Vision Quest, qualified for Boston.

My friend Melissa Gleaton inspires me. She is new to running and has this fierce determination about setting and achieving goals for herself.

She posted these words of wisdom on Facebook: "During my 5k on Saturday I felt like I was struggling and thought "there is no way I can do 10k in July." Then, during my 5-miler on Sunday I felt great, that I could even go one more mile. What a difference a day makes." She did the Memorial Day Weekend Challenge racing a 5K and then a 5 Mile Race the following day. With grace, she posted the photo of her last place in the 5K and the next day, posted the photo of her medal from completing the challenge:



John Young is the embodiment of grace as evidenced when he had to withdraw from the Boston Marathon this year due to illness. He went on to finish the race.



As a volunteer at Boston's Run to Remember, I was inspired to see Justin O'Connell who lives with rods in his back after surgery for scoliosis, come down Arlington Street in the "back of the pack." He had run this year's Boston Marathon and last Thursday won first place in the Challenged Athletes group at the Team Hoyt 5K. He was going to drop out of the Run to Remember at mile 8 but the fans and one very special runner who runs with Back on My Feet Boston, Jess Lanzoni, supported and encouraged him so he was able to cross the finish line.

I am inspired and in awe of my friend Gail Martin who has set out to run a marathon in every state and runs ultras. This past weeekend she posted she had a -27 minute PR on her ultra. Yet a few weeks ago, she had one of her slowest marathon times and is able to take it all in stride. She encouraged me to come out for the Fr. Bullock Charity Race on June 8th. She posted on Facebook, please just come and enjoy yourself. There will be walkers and runners of all paces.

I am running for me now and feeling the joy and the gift of being able to run. I realize that the feeling of being "too slow" have actually kept me from being a part of recent races that I easily could have been a part of like the BAA 5K and the Run to Remember. I plan to run them next year. But if there are races with a fast field, I am delighted to volunteer or be a spectator for Tom.

With my return to the running community this past year after a two year hiatus, and having the view as a volunteer, a spectator, a mid and back packer, I can feel myself shaking loose those demons that were deeply embedded in my body, mind and soul as a result of paralytic polio and trauma. I am finding grace and equanimity in myself through being blessed to witness the grace and beauty of those around me. I feel the grace that is the thread that weaves together our very fabric as a community of runners. It does a mind, body and soul good!

"What distinguishes those of us at the starting line from those of us on the couch is that we learn through running to take what the days gives us, what our body will allow us, and what our will can tolerate." ~John "The Penguin" Bingham

#Transformation Tuesday

May 25th will mark 7 years since I left my award winning career as a VA social worker to "heal my life" and "follow my passion as a poet and writer."

I didn't really know what I was saying at the time. I put out an intention.

From my memoir, "Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility":

I didn’t know what needed healing or how that healing would happen. I only knew that I needed time and space away from the stress of getting up at 5:30 every morning, commuting into Boston, taking care of veterans and their families as well as the people on my team, and my own family members. I hold myself responsible for my inability to set limits. I feel tremendous compassion for myself that I was like a hamster in a wheel and had no idea how to get off of it within the VA system. I know many of my colleagues resented me for how much work I did do. I was held up as the standard for social workers when it came to ‘my numbers’ and documentation. There is the middle way of being able to find balance and self care while providing outstanding care to veterans and their families but I was damned if I knew how to get there at that time.

I smile as I ponder how many reinventions I have experienced these past 7 years that were a part of my journey but no longer a part of my life now:
New World Greeting Cards - original poetry for every occasion - It's More Than a Card, It's a Gift From the Heart
Rotarian and the End Polio Now Campaign
Yoga Teacher Training, becoming a certified yoga teacher and even volunteering as a yoga teacher
Brookline Small Business Owners Association
Taking on a few geriatric clients for case management
Poetry readings at assisted living facilities and nursing homes
Helping to launch and market a few small businesses

But what is Truth and true for me always remains and I cherish
Running the 2009 Boston Marathon
Being a part of the running community as a runner, spectator and support crew
My gift of poetry and still creating original poems for friends' birthdays
Writing my next poetry book "Journey Well"
Blogging and social media
Writing my memoir and working on the sequel Coming Home: The Journey of Acceptance
Continuing to find my strength at Spaulding Rehab through their Aquatics Therapy Program and tending to my healing mind, body and Spirit.

I have been fierce about changing course when I realized something was not the right healing modality for me or an activity did not nourish my Spirit. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I recently pruned and weeded in my garden and in my life experiencing a wonderful blossoming of connections of like hearted people coming into my life.

And this is what I cherish most of all about having had the courage to take a leap of faith, leave my full time job at the VA and exploring, experimenting and finding my way on this long and winding road: the people I've met on this journey who chose a path of transformation and inspire others sending a message of what is possible when we set our hearts and minds on a goal and take action!

Here a few of my favs. Please take some time to check them out:

Randy Pierce 2020 Vision Quest
Rachel Weeks and The Imperfect Journey
John Young
Christa Avampato

For the first time in 7 years, I feel a sense of contentment. My soul no longer feels restless. I feel blessed by where I am in my life no longer striving or seeking. I feel transformed from a woman burdened by the ravages that paralytic polio and trauma took on me mind, body and spirit to a woman who feels whole and healing, strengthened by the challenges, feeling joy that I am here now.

On Runners, The Running Community and Visionaries

I wasn't born to run and running does not come easy to me to say the least. But I love to run - well race walking now. For me and my body it's running.

When it comes to running, I was a late bloomer. Now there is an understatement. I remember when I was diagnosed with post polio syndrome in December of 2006. In February of 2007, I wrote the poem "Running the Race" ... while in my mind I focused on winning a 10K race. In February of 2008, I told my personal trainer that my next goal was to run the 2009 Boston Marathon. It didn't matter that I had never run a day in my life. I bought my first pair of running shoes at age 53. I trusted in my personal trainer, and Domenick D'Amico, my beloved coach and trainer with Spaulding Rehab's Race for Rehab team and my own grit and determination to train for a marathon. I had a vision and a feeling deep in my soul.

During these past 5 years, I have had to take a hiatus from running to address symptoms as a result of the late effects of paralytic polio and trauma. The longest hiatus was from 2011-2013. I thought I wouldn't be able to return to running after the stress of my nephew's suicide took a physical and emotional toll on me. After the 2013 Boston Marathon, I knew I needed to come back to running and the running community. Even though I wasn't born to run, running became a part of my life and feeds my Spirit.

The running community is a family. We cheer each other on and we support each other on and off the roads. There is unconditional love and acceptance. There is joy and high fives whether you break the tape or finish last or as my friend John Young did yesterday, finish his race 19 days later.

One of the things that amazes me about my 2009 Boston Marathon run is how it continues to inspire runners. My run fuels the vision others have to reach their goals.

Last weekend, Randy Pierce and his Guide Thor, drew strength from my inspirational Boston Marathon run. I celebrated their BQ victory as though it were my own knowing and understanding the challenge of going from a wheelchair to take on the challenge of a marathon. And Randy is also totally blind! You can read Randy's race report here and Thor's race report here.

I met Gail Martin through Domenick on Facebook. We finally met in person two years ago and have been close friends ever since. She posted on Facebook that she was going for a BQ and wanted to help her friend BQ because her friend had never run Boston. I provided her friend with inspiration and positive affirmations. Gail posted if body, day and outcome are willing.

She posted this photo on Facebook



She told me that she had printed the photo and laminated it to carry with her during their Maine Coast Marathon today. Even though they did not BQ, she had this to say,

Mary, you did a 4:05 with me today. Beautiful day, gorgeous course. Not much else aligned. Nature of the beast!

I wrote back that it was a PR for me.

We run for ourselves. We run for our health. We also run as visionaries. We believe that through running we can create change in ourselves and support change in others. We run to raise awareness and money for causes near and dear to our heart. We can believe in and support possibility in ourselves and others as we experience the beautiful flow of giving and receiving love and support.

And while I wasn't born to run, and I wasn't born into a family that supported health and athletics, I stumbled upon this amazing community. It all began with me having a vision of winning a 10K race with that poem I wrote while in a leg brace, using a cane and at times a wheelchair for mobility. While I have not been first to cross a finish line, by running and being a part of the running community where we share visions and chase Unicorns, I know that I am winning the marathon of my life.

No Mud - No Lotus

The lotus flower goes through much in its growth before emerging from dirty water to become a beautiful flower. What a wonderful metaphor for our journeys through adversity.

This morning as I drove home from Spaulding Aquatics Therapy class, I passed by Charles River Plaza where, seven and a half years ago, I had an EMG. It was a test that would help to determine the extent of the damage to the nerves in my upper body as a result of contracting paralytic polio when I was 5 years old. It seems like a lifetime ago and in some ways it was!

I am so happy to be here now and grateful for every step of this healing odyssey.

It's almost 7 years since I left the VA with a heavy heart to heal my own life and follow my passion as a poet and a writer. I had no idea what the future held for me; if in fact I would still be alive today at 60 years old because of the diagnosis of post polio syndrome, a progressive neuromuscualr disease. I just knew that I was at a crossroads in my life. Would I find my way to the light even though it meant traveling through a lot of murky water and would I blossom and grow as a result of the challenge of not only the diagnosis of post polio syndrome but the effects of 9 years of unrelenting trauma that I experienced as a child?

We don't know how strong we are until strong is the only choice we have.

This past weekend, through Facebook, I met Randy Pierce and Thor Kirleis. It is astonishing what comes out of adversity. The beautiful flower of all that is the best of being human blossoms. Friendship. Community. Trust. Inspiration. Motivation. Hearts and souls singing songs of compassion, kindness, discovering the power of intention. Strength. Courage. Camaraderie. Kinship and brotherhood borne that is far greater than any blood ties. In yesterday's blog I wrote about Randy's quest to catch the Unicorn as he qualified for Boston 2015.

Thor posted his Providence Marathon Race Report today on his blog. Please take the time to read Thor's post and be sure to have tissues handy!

At the beginning of the race report, Thor shares what happened to him during his first 100 mile race:
That night, I had a glimpse into my soul, deep into my core, to see exactly what I was made of. And you know what? I actually liked what I saw. I gave up on myself time after time, but each time I got back up and kept going. I refused to be defeated. I would not quit.

That is how I felt during the Marathon Sports 5 Miler in July 2008; my first 5 mile race ever. It was hot. I was tired and it was a fast field. I believed that I didn't belong in the running community and all of the taunts from childhood came back to haunt me that day. But my husband who was by my side through every hill and every moment of uncertainty wouldn't let me quit. I apologized to him for holding him back and being dead last and even told him to just take off. But he wouldn't. He helped me dig deep and get myself to the finish line that day. My Marathon Sports family waited for us to cross the finish line sounding the air horn and honking the horn on the sweep truck. I knew that I could and would run the 2009 Boston Marathon.

Thor's race report takes you through their journey on the road of the Providence Marathon but it also takes you inside the journey of two bodies and souls tied together with a mission far greater than qualifying for Boston.

Today, Randy's interview on the Talking Information Center show, Mission Possible was posted. Please take the time to listen as Randy talks about his powerful mission to bring a message of achievement through adversity and ability awareness. He makes the distinction between vision and sight. You can lose your sight but we cannot and must not ever lose our vision.

So while the journey can get "ugly" as Thor eloquently expresses in his race report, and when we are in the mud we may wonder if we will ever find our way into the light, without the challenges, we would never be able to blossom into the fullness of our Being.

"The marvelous richness of human experience would lose something of rewarding joy if there were no limitations to overcome." - Helen Keller

And be sure to join in the #miles4Quinn community!

A Visually Impaired Runner's Quest to Catch the Unicorn and Qualify for Boston

"Achieve a vision beyond your sight." The motto of 2020 Vision Quest

"Believe in your possibility and then find a way to get there." - Randy Pierce

The symbol of the Boston Marathon is the unicorn:



In stories and myths about unicorns they are strong, fast, and hard to catch; an appropriate image for the Boston Marathon especially for those trying to qualify for Boston.

But can you imagine trying to qualify for Boston without your sight trusting in a sighted Guide to help you navigate your way through 26.2 miles in under 5 hours? And to take on this challenge 8 years after coming out of a wheelchair having been wheelchair bound for over 2 years? And to have met your Guide only once in a 10 mile run before you ran the marathon to try to qualify for Boston? That's just what Randy Pierce did at the Cox Providence Marathon yesterday.

On Saturday, I saw this post from one of my Facebook friends, Thor Kirleis, who ran his 100th marathon at the 118th Boston Marathon on 4/21/14:

Friends, on Sunday I will be teaming with Randy as his Guide in a special quest to get him a Boston Qualifier at the Providence Marathon. Although I feel confident in our teamwork, that we will do what we can to meet the goal, please send both of us positive energy, because this will not be easy for either of us, especially in the later miles.

Randy can use the good vibes, as this is his first marathon since going blind -- it is not easy to train properly when visually impaired since finding guides for training runs is very difficult. Although his longest run to date was only 15 miles, he is very strong from having recently completed hiking all 48 of the 4000 foot mountains in the Whites. Plus, he was very comfortable on our 10 mile jaunt last week, talking the entire way, and I feel we could double that before the going gets too hard, which by then will be 20 miles in.

I will need your energy too, as being a Guide requires 100% heightened awareness at all times and is mentally draining; plus, having one hand on a tether for so long is akin to running with one hand behind your back, like a car moving along with a bad piston.

I'll be sure to report back on Sunday!

I had no idea what Randy's back story was. Having worked with the visually impaired veterans when I was a social worker at the VA, I had a deep appreciation for the challenge that Randy and Thor were taking on and I joined my energies to so many on Facebook and in Randy and Thor's communities to set an intention for a safe run and for the ever elusive BQ.

2020 Vision Quest posted:
We want to give a special shout out to Thor Kirleis who will be Randy’s Guide at Sunday’s Cox Providence Marathon by Cox Providence Rhode Races. Thor and Randy met through a blind runners’ group here on Facebook, had a great shakedown run last weekend, and are ready and excited for Sunday's big day. Thor recently finished the Boston Marathon (for the 8th year in a row!), marking his 100th marathon! What an accomplishment!

Best of luck to Randy and Thor as they go after that Boston Marathon qualifying time!

And on Sunday, Thor posted:
Randy and I got him his Boston Qualifier with plenty of time to spare. Thanks everyone for your encouragement and support. We felt it!

Here they are at mile 9. I was deeply moved when I saw this photo. Without having read the back story and having only had a cursory read of Thor's post the Saturday before (see below), I could feel their special bond and the energy, the love and intention that flowed between them as they joined together for a common goal:



As I was doing research for today's blog, I discovered Randy's back story.

Randy Pierce's story will give you goosebumps and chills!



From 2020 Vision Quest:

It began with Randy Pierce and his Guide Dog, Quinn, climbing all 48 of the rugged 4000+ foot peaks in the New Hampshire White Mountains. Using these and other adventures to raise awareness, the core mission will continue as Randy will work to inspire others to set their own visions and help them achieve their goals through outreach, education and support.
Our mission:
2020 Vision Quest inspires people to reach beyond adversity and achieve their highest goals -- personal, professional, and philanthropic. We believe in leading by example, in climbing the highest peaks, and in sharing our successes and challenges with each other. Funds raised through these endeavors will be given to two remarkable organizations which benefit the visually impaired community: Guiding Eyes for the Blind, and the New Hampshire Association for the Blind.

It's not just what Randy does, but how he does it. He has a humble heart as expressed in his after BQ Facebook post in response to my post, "Run the race set before you with endurance."

Endurance was challenged pretty seriously on my end. Both from the stamina and from the pain the buildup by later in the race. Fortunately I had the perfect guy to make today a success

to which I replied:
And you dug deep Randy to achieve your goal. Yes you did have the perfect guy to make today a success and I believe Thor would agree - you had yourself because although Thor was there to cheer you on, support and guide you, it was ultimately your choice to move beyond the pain with determination and courage to finish the race that you chose to run!

Thor agreed with me:
Amen, Mary. Amen. Randy, brother, you kicked ass!

And as for Thor?

He came back from an injury that severed the major nerve in his left leg. He was told he might never walk again nonetheless run again. As he said to me in a Facebook chat:

The 100 marathons, for the most part, came out of that severed nerve injury. I never thought I would be able to walk normally again, let alone run another step. While I was still down, I made a promise to myself that if I ever got back to running, I would run at least a mile a day, each and every day, to celebration the simple fact that I can run. That was 11 years ago. I have held up that promise.... One of the reasons I do what I do is because I thoroughly believe that life is just too damn awesome to sit on the sidelines for. I learned through lots of bumps and bruises that our dreams and goals, even those so lofty to be thought of as untouchable, are limited by our own fear of failure. To lift that blanket, and there are endless possibilities.

He had this to say in a note he posted on Facebook, 4/27/14

As for me and Randy, we have a mutual respect for each other that I know will only make teamwork easy. I am here for one reason -- to help Randy be his best, get in a Boston Qualifier, and make sure we both have fun. I want to not only Guide him, but I also want to paint the picture that is the true experience of Randy achieving yet another goal toward 2020 Vision Quest.

Yesterday, at the Cox Providence Marathon, Thor helped to lead the way for Randy to achieve what few are able to achieve. He helped to make possible what Randy believed was a possibility. He caught the Unicorn and qualified for Boston 2015!