Polyanna has a brain tumor

Everyone asks me “How is Kelly doing?”. And I mentally run through a few ways of answering that, but I settle on the Truth.  Physically, she is feeling fine, at least for now.  And her Spirit is so strong and positive.

For those of you not up on early-20^th-century childrens' literature, the title of this post refers to the 1913 novel by Eleanor H. Porter.  The book itself is so trite and didactic that I roll my eyes.  But here's the point: Polyanna was taught by her father that:

“... there is something about everything that you can be glad about, if you keep hunting long enough to find it.”

So Kelly says “It could have been worse- a tumor could have affected my ability to walk or talk or see or even to breathe!   Oh, yeah- Lord, it could have been better- it could have been my left hand. But I'll take it.”

And even more, we are all counting our blessings from the flood of support and prayers and errands and rides that have bouyed Kelly up and carried her along.  

“Oh, yes," nodded Pollyanna, emphatically. He [her father] said he felt better right away, that first day he thought to count 'em. He said if God took the trouble to tell us eight hundred times [in the Bible] to be glad and rejoice, He must want us to do it - SOME.”

And even more important, the main point of the story of Polyanna is that this attitude is contagious- the whole community can learn it.

“What men and women need is encouragement. Their natural resisting powers should be strengthened, not weakened…. Instead of always harping on a man’s faults,tell him of his virtues. Try to pull him out of his rut of bad habits. Hold up to him his better self, his REAL self that can dare and do and win out! … The influence of a beautiful, helpful, hopeful character is contagious, and may revolutionize a whole town…. People radiate what is in their minds and in their hearts. If a man feels kindly and obliging, his neighbors will feel that way, too, before long.But if he scolds and scowls and criticizes—his neighbors will return scowl for scowl, and add interest! … When you look for the bad, expecting it, you will get it. When you know you will find the good—you will get that…”
― Eleanor H. Porter, Pollyanna