I'm still here...

Busy life these days.  I've been getting over a cold, working on projects, making Christmas shopping lists.  My 55th birthday came and went.  It was a good day, other than being a bit under the weather.  This birthday made me very reflective about my life, because my dad passed away at 55 from cancer.  When it happened, I thought he was way too young to be gone.  Nothing has made that more clear than reaching 55 myself.  I have so much life I still want to live... so many things waiting to be done.  It's a wake-up call to get with it.  Make time for the people I love.  Do the things I've been putting off.  Appreciate every day that I'm given.  I'm so thankful for my life, my family, my friends.  Wishing each of you a Happy Thanksgiving!

What Happened To October?

Oh my! Time flew away while I was busy enjoying the warm days, crisp nights, and colorful leaves.  I woke up today and it really is November!  It's been raining/snowing/raining/cold/wintry, and I just wasn't ready for that.  Oh well, I have started my Christmas shopping and list making.  I took down the Halloween stuff and put up the Thanksgiving decor.  I'm ready for whatever comes!

One wonderful thing that happened this week... my youngest son got all the pieces and parts delivered yesterday and sometime in the wee hours of the morning, he built his own computer!  The best part, he's selling me this one at a great discount, so now I have my own PC again.  I'm thrilled!

Warm thoughts going out to all the folks with outside jobs, like my husband.  He is one of the dedicated employees of the Post Office who will deliver your mail, no matter what the weather!  It is totally worth the price of a stamp to me!  I love getting mail... real mail... the kind you hold in your hand.  Post cards, letters, packages, fun! 

Oh, and while I'm talking about the Post Office, I just have to rant a bit...
I'm heard a lot of comments about packages being destroyed by letter carriers.  You would not believe how poorly people wrap packages to be sent through the mail.  Please wrap it like it's going to be tossed into a truck, onto a plane, stacked under hundreds of other boxes... not like you're hand-carrying it to Grandma's house in your own car.  By the time precious boxes of goodies reach your own letter carrier, they have traveled many miles under rigorous conditions.  And please be good to your carriers.  My husband has delivered everything from bills and birthday cards to live chicks and the ashes of somebody's loved one.  He takes pride in his job.  He watches out for the people on his route, especially the elderly. The following quote became part of the USPS 2001 Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations.  It's a creed my husband lives by.

We are mothers and fathers. And sons and daughters. Who every day go about our lives with duty, honor and pride. And neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, nor the winds of change, nor a nation challenged, will stay us from the swift completion of our appointed rounds. Ever.

Reflections...

Autumn is always a time of reflection for me.  Today is especially poignant.  October 7th was my grandparents anniversary.  They married very young.  They weathered so many things that life tossed at them, and made a decision to stay together, through the wonderful and through the sad.  That decision wasn't made once, on that long ago wedding day.  It was made over, and over again.  When the storm winds came, when doubts assailed, when tears fell like autumn rain, they made the decision to stay. 

As I look back on my life, I can see where their example influenced my decisions to stick it out.  Not easy, but it was right for me.  I'm not saying some folks shouldn't part ways.  I've seen lives begin again, in beautiful ways, when two people realize they are creating more pain than joy.  For me, working through the hard times has made me a stronger, happier person.  I have a husband who really knows me.  He knows me better than my own family does, and so far, he hasn't run screaming from the house.  I am so blessed. 

On this crisp, cloudy, beautiful autumn day, I can say that I am happy for the journey.  For all of it!  Bumps in the road, storms, tears and all.  The hard times have made the sweet, even better.  Remind me of that, the next time I'm having "one of those days" and am feeling inconsolable.  Sunshine and cool breezes are just around the corner.  God doesn't leave us... we leave Him... just tell me to turn around and look.  He is right there.  Love is right there, and it was there all the time.