Thursday, March 31

Quote of the Day:  When asked if my cup is half-full or half empty my only response is that I am thankful to have a cup.  Sam Lefkowitz

From Waking the Warrior Goddess:  Never smoke tabacco products

Thanks for having my back:  Sue O. and Sue B.-  Morning walks bring sunshine, optimism and fun into my life.  I will forever be indebted to the people keeping tabs on me, making sure I’m not going through this alone.  They are taking care of my emotional health.

One of my favorite parables is attributed to Roger Bannister, according to the book, Born to Run, and goes like this.
“Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up.  It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.  Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up.  It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve.  It doesn’t matter whether you’re a lion or a gazelle– when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.”

It’s really all about preparation isn’t it? It’s all about hitting the ground running.  It’s all about being prepared for what life has in store for you.  The saying I quoted in yesterday’s blog, reminds us that we can’t always control life and we don’t know what it may bring, but we must adjust.  So, I do believe there are parts of our lives we have control over.  We can control where we put our priorities- do we get up in the morning and exercise, eat foods that will enhance our health or take it away, learn more or put in more time so that we can be effective in our jobs and careers?  Do we chose to spend time really listening to family members or are we slumped on a couch watching whatever that box decides to put into our heads?

I am in a preparation week and I can only attribute my good feelings of health this week to the work I did (prior to my diagnosis) to make my body strong and healthy.  All those nights of setting the alarm for 5:30 A.M. to face the winter cold @ 6:00 to run were worth it.  I didn’t know if chemo meant feeling rotten for 2 weeks until they zapped you again.   I’m happy to say that there is a reprieve.  I am preparing for the flu next week.  Can you imagine knowing that you are going to come down w/ a sickness in a few days that will make your head ache and throb, cause your stomach to feel nausea almost to the brink of throwing up, heighten your sense of touch and sound so that everything feels irritating,  fill your mouth w/ a chemical taste leaving you feeling dissatisfied after eating and finally taking every ounce of motivation from your personality.  But here’s the reward-  your life may be saved!

But here’s really what I want to say in my blog today.  We all have a limited amount of time-  time cannot be wasted.  We all are given this power and revelation over our lives to know what we are suppose to be spending our time doing.  Now, here’s where that power gets disconnected.  If we are not listening, if we are putting chemicals, alcohol, drugs, bad foods or other harmful substances into our bodies, our minds and spirits can’t think clearly and we won’t have the energy  or desire to be putting our time into the activities that will prepare us for the future.  And believe me, you’ll want to be prepared for what’s to come.  You might be needed to perform in some way, and like the saying goes “when the sun comes up, you’d better be running”.

Lately, I been hearing about people who haven’t dealt w/ issues in their lives and they are now getting older and paying the price, a huge price.  Can I just say that problems can’t be swept under the rug- they won’t disappear and never come back. If you have a non-confrontational personality and really would prefer to not deal w/ issues, you will pay the price and it gets more expensive every day.

That’s why I blog-  this is my way of dealing w/ this very sucky disease that decide to make my body it’s host.  I don’t know how or why it chose me, I only know that I have probably been preparing my whole life to deal with it, and deal with it I will.

Fun times biking w/ friends @ Little Red Riding Hood- June 2010      Joanie, Lori, Patti and Melissa