An amazing transformation takes place when you shift perspective to one of gratitude.
Suddenly you attract abundance to your life, suddenly outcomes become positive, suddenly you reach your goals, and there are more opportunities available to you. That’s the situation that Rose Banuelos found herself in when she decided to live her life to the fullest.
The Fragility of Life
After a moment of clarity, when the fragility of life became apparent to her, Banuelos made the decision to become thankful for each moment she had and not to waste it. One of the things she decided to do was to spread joy to those in her community of Vista. She chose music as the medium to do just that. It was something that brought joy into her own life. With a background that included high school band, Banuelos began to spread her talent by starting a nonprofit called Music for Purpose.
Eventually, the boundaries of her small community began to feel too small. She wanted to reach more students, so she decided to take the music program somewhere she could reach more people. Sadly, Honduras has the world’s highest murder rate and levels of sexual violence. Banuelos learned that that fact, coupled with the country’s lack of afterschool programs and parental supervision, often leaves school-age children susceptible to gangs. Banuelos wanted to give those students something to capture their attention while offering them a sense of happiness and purpose.
Her idea to bring her nonprofit to Honduras quickly gained the funding and support she needed from friends and family, bringing her goal to reality. Facing health challenges herself, Banuelos tirelessly worked toward giving her students a sense of fulfillment. However, she realized her students faced other obstacles and that she needed to do more. Some students were coming to practice hungry. So, she reallocated funds so that the kids receive the nutrition they needed.
Despite her own medical challenges and her family’s concern for her health, Banuelos was undaunted. Her work in Honduras had helped her realize how much she has to be thankful for. So much so, that when she realized she didn’t know any songs to express that gratitude, she decided to write her own.
With the help of family and friends, Rose Banuelos created the song “Thankful,” and dedicated it to the children of Honduras.
With the future in her sights, she’s also focused on expansion. After starting the nonprofit by teaching drums, she hopes to soon introduce brass instruments like trumpets, coronets, and trombones, to her students in Honduras. Though it hasn’t been easy, her journey has taught her that she has plenty to be thankful for in her life.
The abundance, success, and fulfillment that she’s found were always there–it just took that slight shift of perspective for her to finally realize her dreams and carry them out. Now, dozens of students who were in need of something for which to be thankful, are glad she did.
“This year, I want to introduce brass instruments,” says Rose. “So, I’m hoping once I recover that I’m able to somehow get donations. I don’t know how, but I’m here because of the faith that I’ve had so far. So, one way or another it’s going to happen.”
If you would like to make a donation to support Music for Purpose’s goal to buy new instruments, visit their Gofundme page.
