I am so fortunate....

My life is good.

I have friends, angels, blessings....

There is a woman, who I learned about thru an email, who has twin girls. One of them has developed an aggressive form of cancer. I try to pray for her and her family thru out the day. Each time I think of her and the amount of information that is being thrown at her every waking hour.......I feel so sad.

She is young, well at least younger than me..

She and her family believe that prayer will sustain them. I do too.

I am so blessed to have people in my life, today that quietly, constantly believe........really believe.......in universal good, in faith, in trust, in karma, in synchronicity, in love, in truth. No particular religion, only in the power of love and faith.....

How blessed am I?

Old Friends.....

Can sometimes be the the best friends....
and sometimes,
they are like relatives.

Today I am having lunch with my friend, Cheri.
We have known each other for over 45 years.
We have been best friend for most of those years.

Now we are like sisters.
She is older than me, so she thinks she knows what's best.
I have seen more of this world, so I worry about her.

There is a strong bond.....
that sometimes sustains,
and sometimes strains......

We live about 45 minutes from each other now.
When we were growing up, we lived less than 100 yards from each other.
We saw each other, everyday. Now, we see each other about once a month.

We have traveled very different paths, but parallel in many ways.
We love and respect each other.
But we can be each others harshest critics.......

I worry more about her than I do my own child.
Mainly, because I know he has more common sense.
She lacks perspective on reality.

I am always emotionally exhausted when I have spent the day with Cheri,
and in some ways I am also renewed.
I am always grateful.

Two Children....

It is fascinating to me that two children,
brought up in the same family can be so different. My brother and I were brought up by the same college-educated, married conventional, conservative parents.
And we are so different from each other....
We see the world in a totally different way.

Of course,
there is the stuff that happened after we left the nest.
I went out to see the world.
And he went out to see the world.....
I chose an airline, and he chose a branch of the military.
I served people with too much money.....
He served people with many freedoms, and no awareness of them....
I had fun,
he didn't ....
I am the better for my experience.
And he would say that he is too.
Still sometimes...I hear a pessimism in his voice that is difficult for an older sister, that worries, to hear...and to tolerate.
I have been told, by people that love me, that I take things a little too seriously.
I think that they are probably right.
However, I am particularly sensitive to my loved one's mental health. I have seen someone sink into the depths of sickness before. It is not pretty.
I love my brother. He loves me.
He has seen things that I hope to never see.
I wonder if love is always enough?

One Hail of a day....

It hailed yesterday,
started off slow, and then all of a sudden, it let loose.....
It came down so hard, it knocked branches and leaves off all of the trees....
Golf ball sized pellets, and the air became much cooler...
The pellets that sat on the hot pavement out front started to steam..... and the steam filled the air with water vapor.
It was a surreal scene.....
I wish that I had the presence of mind to video the whole episode rather than expecting the photos to do the trick.
The noise was deafening.
The whole atmosphere was back to hot, humid normal within minutes.
Strange weather...

Escorted by Patriots....

Yesterday,
as I drove my sporty new Fit to the edge of our neighborhood,
I came across a rather elegant group of bikers (Harleys) with large American flags trailing behind them.....
At first surprised, and then dismayed as I immediately saw the hearse and the SUV carrying the half dozen or so uniformed young men following behind.
Then the cars with their lights on and flashing......
At the very least a hundred of them....
All traffic stopped..
There I sat in silence, as a lump swelled in my throat.
By the time the end of the line of cars passed, I was crying out right.
I have 3 teen age boys.....
It could have been them.
How very sad on this holiday weekend that we celebrate our freedom....
to watch a true patriot pass...
I am so very proud that the men who rode those Harleys were escorting him (or her), as I feel strongly that they know from whence he came..

We are so very blessed, let's try not to forget it.

How beautiful is this!

I love the summer blooms,

This flower smells so sweet,

I could gain weight just inhaling......

My life is so blessed.

Tea and Sugar tarts....

Have you ever spent time with a friend's family, only to find that they are much nicer than you had been led to believe?

Interestingly, I know that people will behave one way with their family and a totally different way with their friends. But it always surprises me........

There we sat with our tea and sugar tarts in a beautiful little spring room, enjoying the conversation, only to find that this person that I thought I knew had morphed into a spoiled brat, and the mother that I had been warned about was the sweetest little old lady, who was thrill beyond belief to have the "brat" home.

Go figure......

By the end of the trip, I was exhausted.

I was looking for a way out....

I contemplated faking a death (at home), but was way too afraid of the bad karma that would result.

So, I prayed.

And I prayed,

And I prayed on my knees.....

I really wanted to return to the comfort of my home without having put my foot in my mouth.

I think that I may have done just that....

However, the "brat" is fully aware that I was extremely uncomfortable.

She probably thinks there is something wrong with me.

Which in fact there is...

I have learned a valuable lesson this month.

I have learned that when I go on vacations with people I consider friends, I must be prepared for disappointment. I must also be prepared to leave early if need be.....

I am learning to take care of myself.

'Bout time....