Our Hands Can! Community Stories — July 2014: Holidays/Vacation

Before we show you some of the wonderful entries in the Show Us Your Hands! July Picture Project, we’d like to tell you more about what it is we’re doing.

It is easy to forget all the amazing things we can do when living with inflammatory arthritis.  Photos are a great way of putting a picture into our mind of all the things we are accomplishing day to day. And that, in a nutshell, is what the Show Us Your Hands! Picture Project is all about!

Each month we come up with a new theme and ask the community to submit photos of what their hands can do related to the theme. This is one of the ways in which we fulfill our mission of uniting and inspiring the inflammatory arthritis community. But we can’t do it without you. Why not join the Picture Project?

The theme for August is “Food.” Here’s what you do:

1.   Take a photo of your hands chopping, grilling, cooking, eating. You get the idea. If you’re the parent of a child with JA, why not get your kids involved, as well?

2.  Post it on the Show Us Your Hands! Facebook page.

3.  Tag your post with #showusyourhands.

And that’s all! Submit as many photos as you’d like. At the end of the month, our Advisory Council will choose their favorite. The August prize is a copy of Kim P. Miller’s Living with Juvenile Arthritis: A Parent’s Guide. Thanks so much to Kim for the donation! We also should let you know that by submitting a photo, you give Show Us Your Hands! permission to use the photo and your name in our community programs, such as the monthly Our Hands Can! Community Stories.

July’s theme was Holidays/Vacation and we got some amazing entries. Here is a small selection:

Rebecca went to Disney and says she “made it through and had a blast!” It sure looks like both you and the little one on having a good time!

Karen posted this photo, saying “Not exactly "vacation", since the only reason I'm home is because I was let go from my job in April. But I've been using the time to create some jewelry.” We love that you’re making something beautiful out of a difficult time, Karen!

Sheri shared this shot, telling us that she is “spreading the word about Scleroderma awareness in Blarney, Ireland!” Way to go, Sheri!

Congratulations, Sheri. You’re the winner of the July Picture Project! You’ll get an e-book copy of Lene Andersen’s 7 Facets: A Meditation on Pain. Check your inbox for a message from us with details on how to claim your prize.

To see the other entries in our Picture Project, hop on over to the Show Us Your Hands! Facebook page. While you’re there, why not submit a photo yourself?