LIfe Is Too Short To Save The Best For Last

My brother who is 47 was diagnosed with colon cancer that had moved to his liver in October 2009. Needless to say the last year has been an up and down roller coaster BUT he is still fighting!
 Normally my brothers chemo schedule is every monday. With the adjustments in medications and with his Dr's permission he was able to skip the treatment the the week of Thanksgiving. So on that Thursday he was actually feeling pretty good. As usual we all met at my parents house at Lake Martin. It was a beautiful day, perfect for sitting outside and enjoying the beautiful fall colors. We have a pretty large family. The house was overflowing with conversation, laughter and way too much food as usual. It was all good...the food of course was good....but the LAUGHTER was better. He actually  had an appetite which isnt very common these days.
I say all of that because this past week we found out my brother was "disappointed" at Thanksgiving. WHAT? REALLY? WHY? was how we all reacted. He told my sister in law that he was disappointed at Thanksgiving because he actually ate so much at lunch that he didnt get to try any of the desserts. He told her that next year he wanted Thanksgiving day to be nothing but desserts or atleast eat the desserts first and not save the best for last. Of course they both burst into laughter. My sister in law then said "honey we live in the USA we can do whatever we want and we do not have to wait till next year." So one phone call led to another and here is what is happening. This Sunday after early service, my parents, my siblings and their families, aunts, uncles and cousins and some special family friends are all gathering at my parents house. We will fill the house with all homemade desserts and wonderful coffee. It is being referred to as "Dessert Sunday". Anytime I am with my family it is a great time. I can only imagine how much fun we are going to have all jacked up on sugar and caffeine. 
Once again, my brother, the wise ole owl has pointed out that we have been doing things in the wrong order. This Sunday we are going to do it right...we are not going to save the BEST FOR LAST, we are actually having ONLY the BEST!

Just for the record-I am running a 5k the day before so yes, I will be sampling the desserts.

I Have Seen The Signs...Now What?

<>All of my life I have been that person who looks for "signs". Everything and anything I do,I am looking for a "sign" to help me make the right decision. I often find myself looking for "signs" of hope. I look for "signs" that things are going to be okay. It is not always easy to see the signs. Sometimes I am sure that God wants to hit me up side the head with a billboard because I keep walking around,over and through the sign He has given me.Sometimes these "signs" are not a literal word, although they can be. Sometimes the "signs" come in the form of a thought that just pops into my head; a repeated sighting of an object (like an owl, another blog for another day) a converstation a friend or stranger initiates with me; a book or song title; a word in a song that I have listened to a million times but never really HEARD and of course "signs" come to me in dreams-some while I sleep and dreams while I am wide awake. Well, over the recent days I have seen "signs", all of these "signs" revolve around one situation in my life. The "signs" came through 2 people in my life. One who has been there for many years and one who has been in my life less than a year.  Both "signs" were provided in the mist of good times and laughter, thats the best kind.These "signs" were oh so very clear. I have seen the "signs", that is the easy part this time  I guess. The hardest part sometimes is knowing what to do with them.     I used to wait for a sign, she said, before I did anything. Then one night I had a dream & an angel in black tights came to me & said, you can start any time now, & then I asked is this a sign? & the angel started laughing & I woke up. Now, I think the whole world is filled with signs, but if there's no laughter, I know they're not for me.
Brian Andreas

A Women No Longer In Search Of Her Word

I was recently home alone(which is very rare) and decided to rent a movie.

I watched the movie Eat Pray Love. I thought it was a great movie. I have heard mixed reviews but for me, it was great. As a 41 yo female I found myself relating to Liz Gilbert in some ways. The details of our lives are different but the same. Throughout the movie I kept saying "I know how you feel" or "I have felt that exact same way."

Like other things happening around me right now(one of my sisters is a 3yr cancer survivor, my brother has been fighting colon/liver cancer since Oct 2009, my children are growing up so fast and will be out of the house before I know it) it  made me reexamine my life. I recenlty rewrote my Bucket List and started running again 5 wks ago and have already completed two 5k's. There are just so many things that I want to do,some are problably within reach, while others are not, but this movie makes you think. What is my purpose? What am I living for? Who am I living for(Other than God)? What is MY word?(you must watch the movie to understand this)

Liz was referred by her friend as a "women in search of her word". Your WORD isnt what you do or who you are..its YOUR word. I am a daughter, sister, Christian, aunt, cousin, friend, wife, mother, Speech Pathologist, Realtor and Photographer. These things describe who I am  and what I do, but not MY word.

I had been discussing this movie with a dear friend of mine. She is much younger than I but a very deep and mature thinker. We both loved the movie although at such different ages we saw things a little different. The differences in our views I believe is due to the experiences that come with age. Funny thing is, she was with me when my WORD found me. We entered a store that had a 100 or more signs on the wall and the only thing I saw was JOURNEY. JOURNEY! Thats it! With my recent "angels" pushing me out of my comfort zone and the revised Bucket List I have made it all made sense. My word is JOURNEY. I am no longer a women in search of her word. Now the question is...what am I going to do with  my word?

How am I going to live my word?

What is your WORD?

Let me close by saying that I have never ever blogged before this very moment. I have actually been debating posting this for a couple of days. I am not even sure who I think will ever read this, but that is not the point. I am doing alot of things out of my comfort zone at this point in my life and I have angels to thank for that.

"Most people don't know there are angels whose only job is to make sure you don't get too comfortable & fall asleep & miss your life. "
— Brian Andreas