A warm greeting from Inspiration from a Blind, brought to you monthly by
ShirleyCheng.com ...this time, with a special fun offer, so read on!
How would you like to have the power to see into the future? For many, on first thought, that would be a power they crave. Truthfully, if I don't give it some thought, I'd say that I'd love to have the power to see into the future, to know what will happen next and whom I will meet. But after carefully considering it, I like to keep the future a secret. I like the moments when life throws me surprises, and I've received plenty of them, both good and bad. Just as I don't read the last few pages of a book to find out the ending, I wouldn't want to live a life without any excitement. So I welcome it when life surprises me.
Indeed, life likes to shout "Surprise!" when we least expect it. Thus, we do not have the time to even cross our fingers and wish for the best. With every passing day, our hearts hope for a brighter future and that life will bring us many good surprises.
Life surprised me on the evening of October 6. After we (my mother and I) arrived at Borders Books & Music for my second book signing there (in less than two months), we noticed they only had one display copy of each of my titles they ordered, so we were quite puzzled because they should have 17 display copies. "We sold them!" was the answer we received when we asked. I was almost speechless when I heard that. They had sold 14 of the display copies before my signing and just reserved the last display copy for each title. I wonder if more copies would be sold if they had more; guess I'll never know.
I had a super time during that signing. There were more people in the store that time than the first time, which was on a Saturday afternoon, so definitely, evenings are much better to have a book signing (at least, it is the case with this bookstore in my area).
I received another great surprise when my best friend and her boyfriend showed up about thirty minutes before I was to leave. So that really ended my day well. I was even too excited to fall asleep that night. My mind kept returning to the books they sold.
And on October 22—my last surprise for the month—I suddenly had the urge to publish another book, so it will be my fourth book. I am currently working on it and plan to publish it in January. I am highly excited about the project; it will be a beautiful book in every sense of the word. So stay tuned!
Ken Bossone, the president of World Positive Thinkers Club, of which I am a member, interviewed me last month...
Shirley is considered the modern day Helen Keller, so sit back, relax and read an extremely inspiring interview.
Question #1. What exactly was your malady (s) and at what age did it(they)occur? (Birth?)
Five days after receiving a TB skin test when I was eleven months old, I developed a very high fever, followed by swollen joints (first with my knees). I was soon diagnosed with severe juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Everyone was stunned that such an unfortunate thing could happen. At age six, the vision of my left eye deteriorated to a great extent due to the intake of some herbs. Then I lost my eyesight at the age of seventeen due to the intake of digestive enzymes. I also have heart disease caused by the severe juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, as well as asthma which was caused by the repetitive incompetent—at times, abusive—"care" I received from some of the one-to-one aides I had when I attended school.
2. Who and what helped you overcome the malady(s). Did anyone try to keep you from getting better?
My beloved mother, Juliet Cheng, has been my supporter and caregiver all of my life and she has helped me to overcome all of my disabilities. She is the cornerstone and light of my life. She is the foundation of my happiness, strength and success. She has saved my life numerous times from the grasp of death while battling her own horrendous illnesses. Her love for me conquers all and she has this invincible stamina to fight for my life till she wins.
Also, my strong passion for life has made me unstoppable; the power of life breathes into me, enabling me to take my giant steps forward. I am a very spiritual person who loves and appreciates all that life has to offer. Life has given me plenty of treasures to be thankful for. True, not all treasures shine or shimmer; many of them are high mountains I must climb and deep oceans I must cross. But I believe challenges and obstacles are life's vaccines; they equip your soul with the necessary tool to battle future storms. I have received many of these vaccines; the obstacles have left numerous scars on my body in all shapes and sizes, but these marks have made me stronger and more invincible as I wait for the next high mountain to climb. I relished the taste of victory each and every time I battled and won. If there were no challenges, how could I name myself a victor? If there were no darkness, how could the stars appear so bright?
Sadly, there have been people who tried to keep me from getting better; plenty of people have made my life extremely hard and downright horrifying. Being disabled is already hard enough without having to endure the unnecessary man-made hardships that both my mother and I have to deal with constantly. Many times, these people claimed to do things in my "best" interest. For example, my mother lost custody of me twice in America only after disagreeing with doctors' recommended treatments—and those treatments would have ended my young life. The last case in 1990 made international headlines; she was on CBS one morning with Paula Zahn. What happened back then? The doctor in Connecticut wanted to operate on 6 of my joints in one operation when he didn't even have any medicine to control my inflammation, so my mother wisely refused the surgery. Fortunately, she won me back both times so I didn't receive the unwanted, harmful treatments that could send me to my grave, or worse, paralyze me.
3. At what age did you decide to get into motivation and what was your main reason?
Unconsciously, I have always loved motivating others ever since I was a very young child. People are usually motivated by me through my everyday positive attitude and actions. For example, I was nicknamed Happy Baby when I was a year old despite the constant pain that ravaged through my body. I have a strong desire, an urge, to empower, inspire, and motivate others to go for their gold medals in life as I have gone for mine despite insurmountable challenges. I want people to realize the importance of life, of their own existence. Life is simply too precious to be wasted.
When you're given life, you should cherish it. Value every minute of your existence and hold on to the happy moments and don't let them pass you by. Don't dwell on the bad situations; but move forward. Focus on the good things you do have at the present and the positive side of things; utilize what you learned from your past and your mistakes to make the present and future a brighter place.
I am not sure at what age I have consciously first decided to motivate others; perhaps, it was when I was in the ninth grade when I ran for student body vice president (not class government, but for the entire student body). It absolutely feels exhilarating to inspire others, to bring tears to someone's eyes and a smile upon their lips all at the same time. But when I first became an author at age twenty was the time I fully realized my life's mission to motivate others.
4. What books have you published? Do you have any bestsellers? (100,000 or more sold)
I am a poet, and author and contributing author of eight books. The books I've written and self-published are The Revelation of a Star's Endless Shine: A Young Woman's Autobiography of a 20-Year Tale of Trials & Tribulations (an empowering 700-page autobiography to bring humor, hope, and healing); Dance with Your Heart: Tales and Poems That the Heart Tells (a collection of inspirational and fantasy short stories, including fairy tales, fables, and myths, and poems for the heart, from the heart); and Daring Quests of Mystics (fairy tales that depict my dreams of a utopian world where good is the best magic and where pure goodness is not too good to be true).
I've co-authored 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life,Volume 2 with 100 self-improvement experts, including the well-known Jack Canfield and Dr. John Gray. If you want to achieve spiritual affinity and ultimately the success and fulfillment that come with it, then read my chapter,Dance with Your Heart: How to Befriend Your Heart and the World Around You, which gently teaches you how to hold hands with yourself, then ultimately with others around you.
I've also contributed to Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Finding Your Life's Passion, Second Edition, along with the highly acclaimed experts Dr. Wayne Dyer, Anthony Robbins, and Brian Tracy.
As of now, I do not have any bestsellers, but I'm working on it hard!
5. What advice do you have for people who don't think they can overcome their mountains?
Do you truly, truly want a happy life, a life you love to live? If you are truly and honestly serious about achieving such a life, then you have the power to overcome your mountains. Your future is ultimately up to you; there are always two roads to choose from in life: the road to happiness and the road to misery. By picking the road to misery, you'll put yourself in a much more miserable situation than the one you're already in.
Keep in mind that there's always someone out there who is in a much worse situation than the one you are in, so be thankful for what and whom you have. You have the power to disable yourself or enable yourself to be abled, so which road will you choose?
Thank you, Ken, for giving me this opportunity to motivate your newsletter subscribers.
To anyone who would like to learn more about me, my books, and what I do and to listen to some of my radio interviews, I welcome you to visit me at http://www.shirleycheng.com, a site I designed and maintain on my own...yes, a blind can do all that with just plenty of passion and faith!
About the author:
Shirley Cheng (b. 1983), a blind and physically disabled motivational speaker, poet, author and contributing author of eight books, has had severe juvenile rheumatoid arthritis since infancy, and did not receive education until age eleven. She mastered sixth-grade level in all areas after about 180 days of schooling in her lifetime. After a successful eye surgery, she hopes to earn multiple science doctorates from Harvard University. Despite her multiple disabilities, Shirley is living the life she loves and she empowers, inspires, and motivates others to do the same. Be inspired by her books, including 'The Revelation of a Star's Endless Shine', and her newsletter 'Inspiration from a Blind', to which you can subscribe via at http://www.shirleycheng.com
I had fun at my second book signing even though I didn't sell any books. It was during Mid-Autumn Festival sponsored by Mid-Hudson Chinese Community Association. They played a few traditional songs that I know well. Children recited poems about the moon, performed an act about the moon, and they went around the room to ask people to guess the answers to the riddles. I received a riddle, and I got my answer right on first try. I told my mom my guess, and she told the child. Then I told her that I wasn't so sure, so she passed my message to the kid. Somehow, my answer wasn't counted, so I did not receive a prize. I found out that my guess was correct afterwards; but it was too late. All in all, the event was nice.
Here's the riddle for anyone who like to try it. If you get it right, you'll receive $2 off on any of my books, so send your guesses my way!
"Far away, it looks like a wall; up close, it looks like a row of houses; and it can travel 1,000 miles in a day." (Of course, this is not the exact wording, but it's mighty close.)
I'll post the answer in next month's issue, along with any winner(s)!
For extra bonus and fun, here's a riddle my best friend told me:
"What's a witch's favorite subject in school?"
If you get the answer right, you'll receive a $1 off any of my books. So if you get both of them correct, you get $3 off, so pass along your answers to me! You can learn more about my books at http://www.shirleycheng.com
Upcoming Radio Show Appearance Schedule
I will be on The Namaste Show with host Jennifer Clark on CKCU-FM 93.1 FM (Ottawa, Canada) on November 7 from 12:15 to 1:00 p.m. EST.
Next, I'm slated to appear on A Fresh Start with Sallie Felton on December 6 at 3:00 p.m. EST for an hour
I had a great short interview on The Phil and Scotty Show on October 17, and it is available for listening from my site http://www.shirleycheng.com
It is the first link under "Radio Interviews with Shirley Cheng". Details about my upcoming appearances are under "News Flash!" Tune in if you can!
Also, I made a video about my next year's speaking engagement in Canada, and it can be viewed at:
http://www.shirleycheng.com/video.html
That's all the updates I have for this issue. Until next time, remember to appreciate all surprises life grants you, both the good and the bad, from which you can learn. And have a blessed Thanksgiving this year!
Shirley Cheng, www.ShirleyCheng.com
