Summer is almost here. I'm not sure about you, but I'm one who isn't so fond of summer and the hot weather it brings. I know most people love the hot weather, but not me, nope, no way. I can't even handle the weather in spring. When it hits 75 degrees, I wish I were in Alaska (well, okay, maybe not exactly in Alaska).

Anyway, I'm here to update you on the latest happenings, not to babble on about weather, right? Okay, so here are the updates: I had a nice but short interview on Calling All Authors on May 30. You can listen to the recorded interview by going to http://www.shirleycheng.com. It is listed under "Radio Interviews with Shirley Cheng."

On June 10, I will be the guest on The Rose More Show to speak out for students with special needs to stop abuse. Below is excerpted from my press release:

Child prodigy Shirley Cheng will advocate aide screening and monitoring for special needs students on The Rose Moore Show on June 10 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time (6:00 p.m. PDT). Tune in to the live show at http://www.alltalkradio.net/rosemoore As horrible as it is, abuse is going on in schools and the schools are not preventing it. Students with special needs are being "cared" for by abusive and incompetent one-to-one aides, and we must put an end to this crime. If you can help, please do so and call in.

"We're fighting human nature here," says Shirley, a victim and survivor of abuse when she attended public schools. "It is much harder to fight human nature than it is to fight the laws. This problem needs to be fix from the very top—the government needs to set laws or policies to prevent abuse."

"The problems with the bad aides actually lies in the topmost authorities—the school officials." says Shirley.

"What could a single woman (the aide) possibly do when she isn't allowed to abuse a child? If the society does not allow abuse from happening, this would not occur," Shirley further says. "We have abuse all over the place—in hospitals and nursing homes—and most of the time, it could be prevented or stopped. But when people who have the power to stop it don't, we arrive at a sad dead end."

So, folks, please join me live if you can! If not, you can listen to a recording of the show later on. I'll make it available on my site.

This is a very serious issue, no doubt, but it is also one I had personally dealt with as a disabled student in public schools. I survived abuse and mistreatment from the one-to-one aides who assisted my physical needs. My mother and I complained to the schools, our voice was ignored, and I kept on hurting. Trying to have the school switch the abusive aides for me, my mom had called Child Protective Services, the police, the local newspapers, the Health Department, etc., etc., etc.; we wrote letters and she personally delivered them to a senator's office; we wrote letter after letter to principals, superintendents, etc.. What did we achieve? Nothing. No one could help—CPS and the police refused to help. After the school finally assigned a new aide for me, the new aide turned out to be another abusive or incompetent aide, so we were stuck with the same problem all over again.

Please, this must not happen to any more students...or the disabled people in general. If you know anyone who is involved with this one way or another, please have that person contact me or call in during the show. I need all the help I can get; one person like myself cannot move mountains—we need to combine our power to make the world a better place. Thank you.

But I must stress here that I did have a couple of wonderful ladies to be my aides, and I was very grateful for that. I also had an excellent principal in 8th grade, so switching aides was not a problem at all that year.

Before I end this newsletter issue, I wanted to let you know that I have a new blog, and I've moved my previous newsletter issues to the blog, so you can read them there! Go to http://blog.shirleycheng.com All of the issues are filed under the Inspiration from a Blind category. Feel free to leave a comment in the comment section. You can also subscribe to my blog via e-mail so you'll know whenever I post a new entry.

Oh, yes, one very last thing—I am still taking pre-orders for 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. I will sign each book, personalized with your name or your friend's name if you're giving it as a gift. Where else can you receive quick, short, and easy-to-follow tips to improve your life from 101 top experts, including Jack Canfield and John Gray, in a single volume? So grab a copy at http://www.shirleycheng.com or e-mail me. And (yes, I have more to say) you'll receive a bundle of f.ree downloadable surprise gifts when you order a copy.

Thanks once again for remaining a faithful subscriber and reading my newsletter.
Take care.

Shirley Cheng