THREE BEAUTIFUL THINGS

In completely no particular order:

1. On Thursday last, my husband received a prestigious award for his work with juveniles, and in a few weeks, my daughter will be receiving an equally prestigious award for her work in youth leadership. (See how I put two beautiful things into one right there? That's the type of non-award winning writing of which I am capable!)

2. Baseball season starts tomorrow - I loves me some baseball, most especially, and some might say, obsessively, the GIANTS!

3. He loves her, and she loves him.

"Our childhood equipped us to deal with weirdness and trauma, but if something good happens,
we don't have a clue."

Marcia Preston
The Butterfly House

"That's Longer Than I've Been Alive!"

Yes, my dear, it certainly is - 29 years of marriage - what is there to say? Having the same arguments for that long...having the same conversations over and over again, and yet, the man continues to surprise me in ways that I cannot really explain. I keep hanging around just to see what will happen next!

Still searching for some meaning in my latest round of medical issues; well, not meaning, I suppose, but rather I don't know what...something that will tie everything together and make some sense. I'm thinking that won't happen - it doesn't exist. This has all brought a new definition to sick and tired...

Her

As I understand, it is Women's History Month, and blogging etiquette dictates dedicating a blog a week to influential women in our lives. I can manage at least one such dedication - I'm not so good with etiquette or rules, in general. My precious daughter, Sarah, has been the woman who has guided my life, directed my morality and saved my sanity...even before she was a woman.

Because of my child, I have tried to be a living example of truth and justice. Even when decisions have been most difficult - and especially when they are - I always have Sarah in my mind...what would she think if I did this? what kind of message would it send her if I did that? The choices that I have made - and continue to make - are always surrounded by her and what she will learn from them and what she will think of me as a result. In this way, she has made life quite easy for me; the knowledge that she watches what I do and say, has forced me to strive to "do the right thing" in all that I encounter - she is as powerful as the threat of Hell for me!

As she has matured into the fine woman that she is, my daughter has provided me with a living example of truth and justice. In the face of adversity or the possibility of exile from friendship, she continually remains true to her ethics, her morality and her faith. Knowing what is important and valuable in this world, she is a lighthouse in a sea swirling with dishonesty and disrespect. Sarah is my own, personal guide in life!

In ways, big and small, my child has saved me from myself; she has preserved my sanity (although, I know, at times, it is a very-nearly-unraveling rope that I hold!). Honestly, and I do not know how else to be, I believe that God sent her to me to allow me the opportunity to change my life, to make me better, to permit me to overcome. And she has done all of that - and so much more - for me. I thank God for her; I thank her for her. I love her completely and absolutely and unconditionally. She is the woman who has most influenced my life.

Final Installment

A few more things that I enjoy:

planting for the summer harvest
ordinary time
taking a vacation
breakfast with the girls
birthdays
a good, hearty, real laugh
office supplies - another sickness
alphabetizing
orderliness, in general
thinking about the GIANTS games we will attend
my girl in love
new pajamas
a good cry - not the reasons for it, but the cry itself
getting to the other side
mix cds that my daughter has made for me
knowing that my husband loves me no matter what
being Catholic - the Mass, Communion, the guilt (!!!), all of it

Hey, Wait, There's More...

I also enjoy:

Paradise by the Dashboard Lights
baseball season
Snickers
playing Scrabble
making lists
attending Mass anywhere in the world and knowing exactly what to do
going to Costco - it's a sickness
working in the yard
coming across random pictures of my daughter
MY DAUGHTER!!!!!
knowing that I can teach
the 4th of July
getting money in the mail
a really good movie
red vines
date night

The Lovefest Continues

I enjoy...

the truth
a good cinnamon roll
not having to work
the SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
seeing how happy my girl is
finding that I still like to do things I thought I didn't anymore
American Idol - I don't want to, but I do!
CNN
all my little critters
singing at church
not worrying - a rare thing, but I do enjoy it when it occurs!
November 25th
knowing I have a surprise for my husband on our 29th anniversary
lobster
escargots
my husband's bbq - ain't nothin' like it!

Ode to Copycats

Trying my hand at listing things that I find enjoyable:

everything about my child
my husband - usually
most of my friends most of the time
reading a good book
finishing a sewing/crocheting/knitting project
being a California native
discovering love again
watching the dance
singing along to just about anything - especially with my daughter
my red ipod
Neil Diamond
Meatloaf - the singer more than the actual loaf
Rob Thomas
Christopher Walken
Gregory Peck
To Kill a Mockingbird - the book and the movie
a good Mass
Communion
saying the rosary
knowing Our Blessed Mother holds me in her arms
RED
baking
Fridays in Lent
being able to laugh at/about/over my mother - finally!

...more to come...

Feeling a bit out of sorts - I really do not enjoy waiting for test results...and I really do not wish to burden anyone else with my concerns. Waiting is difficult, whether it be for medical outcomes, academic scores, someone's return or the blooming of love. Patience is not something that most people do well. During this Lenten Season, I am exercising more effort in that arena, but finding myself increasingly less able to do so. Maybe I am praying for the wrong thing or in the wrong way, but I do not know any other way to ask, and I do not have the patience to search for another path.