I'm not going to die. At least not this week. At least not of any anticipated causes.
I went to my doc appointment on Monday and got a nice extra birthday present. The lump in my ribcage is not serious. Dr. J examined it and explained it's fairly common, a fat deposit, and it isn't likely to grow much bigger and doesn't have to be removed unless it causes some discomfort. Marie still hasn't heard from her doctor, however. Something that alarming, they ought to get back to the patient as fast as possible.
Stephanie invited me to Thanksgiving dinner but I can't really go: I have to work the next morning. Only the staff with the most seniority or the fastest draw on the PTO forms manages to wrangle out of post-holiday duty. There will be hundreds of confused Thursday garbage customers calling to complain about their can.
I'm relieved not to die, but when the time comes I hope you'll throw a party and sing the fight song for me. Be sure and serve good snacks. I highly recommend the Martinelli's Grape-Apple Sparkling Cider. It's on sale at Winco, 1.98 a bottle. Very festive. I may walk over and buy a bottle after my nap.
I forget who, it may have been George Burns or Rodney Dangerfield, but there was a comedian who used to say, "I'm at a wonderful time in my life. I was always taught to respect my elders, and now I'm so old I don't have to respect anybody."
The great thing about being old is, I can buy a bottle of Sparkling Grape-Apple Cider whenever I want, and drink the whole thing from the bottle, and no one can tell me "don't touch that, it's for thanksgiving." All anyone would say is, "Leave him alone. He's old."
And Marie says I look damn good for 53. And that's good enough for me.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
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This is the Way the Transformation Begins
"Some men see things as they are and say why? I dream things that never were and say "Why not?"
George Bernard Shaw, Robert F. Kennedy
This is the way the transformation begins.
It begins in me.
It begins now.
It begins with small incremental changes and shifts in attitude
it begins with positive action
failing forward
and suddenly I start looking at the world and my place in it in a new way. I speak differently and dress differently and project a different energy, and the world opens up like a glorious pink azalea bush, eight feet tall and blooming like mad.
photo by Kajo123 from the website flickr.com
Good morning!
An engineer builds a bridge and every bolt and weld has to be exactly right; every measure has to be perfect, or the bridge collapses or fails to take its place. Fantastically detailed blueprints have to be laid out. Impact statements have to be filed, sediment has to be studied, years of effort, months of planning, and a man-made marvel rises in the sky. Park somewhere and take a good look at a bridge, and think of all the skill and knowledge and hard honest work it took to create it. Consider how a few thousand years ago we were living in caves.
It is not so with a dream. Some people are remarkable dreamers and dreams spring whole from them, or they can leap up from bed and pages of creative genius flow out of their pen, intricate and perfect. Most of us though are baby dreamers, new at it and tentative to the trust the power of what we wish for.
Start the dream! Whether you want to go to nursing school or college or learn to play the guitar, take a first step, now, even in the wrong direction. Don't wait for the blueprint to come to you, the environmental impact statement, the permits and the 200-page budget and legislative dream approval. Rough it out, sketch it on a napkin, tell a friend, and take action. Your dream begins the moment you step out in first moment of believing, and the result can touch a thousand souls. Listen to Jim Valvano: never give up, never surrender. Believe in the audacity of action and your fantastic potential for change and new opportunity.
It is not so with a dream. Some people are remarkable dreamers and dreams spring whole from them, or they can leap up from bed and pages of creative genius flow out of their pen, intricate and perfect. Most of us though are baby dreamers, new at it and tentative to the trust the power of what we wish for.
Start the dream! Whether you want to go to nursing school or college or learn to play the guitar, take a first step, now, even in the wrong direction. Don't wait for the blueprint to come to you, the environmental impact statement, the permits and the 200-page budget and legislative dream approval. Rough it out, sketch it on a napkin, tell a friend, and take action. Your dream begins the moment you step out in first moment of believing, and the result can touch a thousand souls. Listen to Jim Valvano: never give up, never surrender. Believe in the audacity of action and your fantastic potential for change and new opportunity.
The Hawthorne Bridge at sunrise, Portland Oregon. Photo by Joe Collver, from flickr.com
Genuine happiness and success start with an attitude of abundance
Make it a daily practice to begin your day with five minutes of thankfulness. You can even do it in your car on the way to work. Do it in your own way, whether it's thoughtful reflection or a prayer or singing out loud, but focus on your rich, amazing, abundant life.
Feeling grumpy or resentful or worried instead of thankful? Change direction! Consider the incredible gifts you have--mind, body, spirit, senses, your family, your friends, your clothes, your car, and the breakfast you enjoyed this morning. By the standards of 99% of the world, Americans are incredibly, amazingly rich. You truly have no idea how richly blessed you are until you start thinking about it. Even the heart that beats within you and the lungs that breathe your air are an intricate and amazing miracle.
Some of my favorite movies are ones that feature a once-defeated character waking up to an absolutely new day: "It's A Wonderful Life," the various versions of Dicken's "Christmas Carol" and "Groundhog Day." How exhilarating it is for George Bailey to wake up and realize his life isn't over, it's just beginning, and that today truly is a brand new day.
"It's a Wonderful Life"
George returns home to everything he ever wanted.
2 comments:
Dad--
I'm glad you're not dying today. But I've already decided to play the Beaver's fight song at your service.....hahahaha!!!!
Me
So... updates on health concerns please. Still praying for you and Marie.
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