Daisypath Anniversary tickers

Daisypath Anniversary tickers

Friday, December 18, 2009

Anne Mildred Diesslin



April 23, 1920 - December 18, 2009


Sunday, December 13, 2009

Resiliency and Life



I've been able to share a lot of my own personal good news here lately, and I'm really happy that I've been able to do so.

I don't usually use this space for personal matters outside of my cancer.  It's not what I started this for and I didn't want to "muddy the waters;" I only intended this as a place for people to be able to find out how I'm doing when I wasn't able to do many emails.

However, I know many of you will want to know about this, and I haven't had a chance to contact all of you.

Mom's cancer has been catching up with her.  She's had an incredible journey and an amazing fight against something that would have put many people on their knees a long time ago.

But she's starting to fail, and last Friday we re-initiated hospice.

The short version is that she's very frail, weak, and having a hard time.  She has moments of great clarity and manages to find humor in situations even as she hurts and struggles.  She shows love and appreciation for having family around.   She's compliant and graceful as she enters this time of her life.

She may have hours and may have weeks.  The reality is probably somewhere in between. Those of us close to the situation don't see her doing well -- but we know how resilient she can be.

Mom is one of the most resilient people I've ever known, but even she has limits.

I can't help but think about the gifts we're given at times like this.  Although it's hard, and I sometimes have to say no to things I don't think I can do, I'm so glad for what I can do and share in.  I'm glad and grateful to be part of this.

I'm so grateful her grandchildren care and share everything they can: their time, their love, their hearts.  They've been incredible, and their love is a testament to her love for them all these years

I'm glad mom is so gracious and kind and gentle.  I've been with people who are dying before, and I was told by those who work with the dying, that the pure and best essence of a person comes out at this time.  And that's what I've seen.

It's so wonderful to see mom's purest love and spirit shining.

In a season of giving, no matter what your religous beliefs, I'm getting the ultimate gift.  Time with my mom, when it matters like no other time.

May you all have the best gifts of the season.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Seasonal Thoughts



There are many celebrations this season. To name a few:  Winter Solstice may be the oldest. It's also known as Yule, and it celebrates the shortest day and longest night of the year. Christmas is the Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus; Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights, marking the victory of the Maccabees over invaders who had desecrated their temple. Kwanzaa is a Swahili word that means "first" and signifies the first fruits of the harvest. Boxing Day (St. Stephen's Day), the day after Christmas, dates back to England when wealthy homeowners would give gifts to their servants and to the poor. 

A common thread through all of the celebrations of the season is giving and gratitude.  We all always have reasons to be grateful; this year I know I have some special reasons for being so.  And truthfully, just being alive seems reason enough.

Whatever your chosen way to celebrate this season, do it with the love and peace of the season, and the spirits of giving and gratitude.

And don't forget to throw in a little happy dance!


 

What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future. It is a fervent wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal,
and that every path may lead to peace.
~Agnes M. Pharo

Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving,
make every day a holiday and celebrate just living!
~Amanda Bradley

Every piece of the universe, even the tiniest little snow crystal, matters somehow. I have a place in the pattern, and so do you…
~T.A. Barron

The circumstances of your life have uniquely qualified you to make a contribution. And if you don't make that contribution,
nobody else can make it.
~Rabbi Harold S. Kushner

In our deepest moments of struggle, frustration, fear, and confusion, we are being called upon to reach in and touch our hearts. Then, we will know what to do, what to say, how to be. What is right is always in our deepest heart of hearts. It is from the deepest part of our hearts that we are capable of reaching out and touching another human being.
It is, after all, one heart touching another heart.
~Roberta Sage Hamilton

I have found that among its other benefits,
giving liberates the soul of the giver.
~Maya Angelou

Don't spend your precious time asking 'Why isn't the world a better place?' It will only be time wasted. The question to ask is 'How can I make it better?'
To that there is an answer.
~Leo F. Buscaglia

What do we live for if not to make life less difficult for each other?
~Roger Bannister

 There is more hunger for love and appreciation in this world
than for bread.
~Mother Teresa

It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.
~Kahlil Gibran

It's not how much we give but how much love
we put into giving.
~Mother Teresa

There is a wonderful mythical law of nature that the three things we crave most in life -- happiness, freedom, and peace of mind -- are always attained
by giving them to someone else.
~Peyton Conway March

How do you say "thank you" for sunshine or health...for clear days or gentle rains...for happiness, joy or love? You say it by sharing what you have.
You say it by making the world a better place in which to live.
~Thomas D. Willhite

Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.
~Mother Teresa

When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy. When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping
for that which has been your delight.
~Kahlil Gibran

The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.
They must be felt with the heart.
~Helen Keller 1880-1968

And now here is my secret, a very simple secret; it is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential
is invisible to the eye.
~Antoine de Saint-Exupery 1900-1944

















Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Catching Up

Just a few quick comments:

Radiation begins Tuesday, December 8 (mock run on Monday). By my calculations, it'll be over Jan. 15.  I have blue magic marker X's on my body as "tattoos" to help position me for zapping.  

I'm still running on the tired side but nothing like during chemo.

That's the big news. 

Otherwise, I'm still happy dancing! and still full of joy and gratitude.  Happy, merry, everyone!