Celebrating Life

     WOW! It's been quite a while since I posted to my blog.  I read somewhere that when you begin writing blogs you should have a goal of posting 10 to start.  Since the last one I wrote was in November, it's pretty clear that I am a bit slow in achieving that particular goal.  I have, however, been compiling a list of things that I would write about if I were a writer.  Does that count?

     Last week, someone very special passed on. She was young, vibrant, caring and compassionate.  The people whose lives she touched, and there were many, will feel the loss of her light for quite a while.  But I believe that the lessons she taught us with her compassion and courage will live on, as she will in our hearts. 

     Tim McGraw wrote a song for his father called "Live Like You Were Dying".  I am listening to that song as I write and it reminds me of how precious life is and what a gift it is.  Although her life was short, it was a life that anyone would be proud of.  Over the years, I have seen and felt the loss of many people.   Some losses followed the natural progression of life and lived to old age.  Some did not.  But, I have learned that each one of those people, adults and children, have taught me something. 
     And when I can apply those lesson in my own life, well, what better way it there to celebrate the existence of such terrific people.   To pass on what we have learned from them.

And So It Begins

Blogging.  I asked myself why I would want to cloud up my already cloudy mind with creating a blog.  I am not a writer and I am an off the charts introvert.  But then I thought, I am over fifty. Think "plasticity".  That is a fancy way of saying that our brains need new experiences to keep it moving.  I am now looking for new ways to keep my brain moving.  Sharing some of the things I have learned over the years may be helpful (or depressing, depending on your point of view).  

One thing I have learned is that life is one big journey that is constantly changing course.   Just when you decide that you have it all figured out, something happens that disrupts whatever plan you have made.  Which is why I have learned not to make plans too far in advance.  My husband is a planner.  He definitely believes in long term planning.  That seems to work for him as his plans rarely go wrong.  Mine have a tendency to change at a moment's notice.  I think being a mom might have something to do with that.  Even though my daughter is grown with a daughter and husband of her own, I still can't shake that "I need to be available" thing.  

There is a benefit to not being a planner, though.  When the journey starts getting bumpy, it is easier to change course.