I did not write this. This is an email I received today from an angel in my life who has been fighting cancer for a long time. Not to long ago she told us all she was no longer going to spend her days sick and miserable, but living the rest of her days taking life in the best way she could. I wanted to share this because we take for granted the life we have everyday. Here are words from someone who is truly taking in life on a daily basis because she knows her time is short. Read it, feel it, and believe me every word is a lesson. We all have our battles in the world and if we are lucky we can have this view on life while we tackle them. My love to a wise and amazing women!
Dear friends, support group, Trusted confidants and THOSE OF YOU WHO DON'T
Really give a damn but put up with my updates anyhow,
Over the last four months, life has changed once more. I'm leading a pretty
amazing life for someone who was given six months to live in September.
However, I did find out that is more an arbitrary time frame used to get me
in hospice care as soon as possible and not a true time frame. No one
really knows how long I will be around to irritate you all.
I have the best friends and my siblings have been coming through for me
these last couple of months. A mild fall with beautiful golden colors made
sitting in my nest an amazing visual feast. Life has been good.
I've had lots of time to think and consider the great mysteries of life.
I've decided there are no answers to any of life's questions and that's
where faith comes in. I have faith that the cardinal will lose his
brilliant red color, the gold finch will turn a drab olive brown, cold
weather is on its way, and that if we look for it, we are constantly
surrounded by the most amazing world.
I also believe that no matter how hard we try we can never please all of the
people all the time (however, that is still under advisement by a few poorly
informed types), we can please some of the people some of the time, and we
can please some of the people NEVER!!!! That one I know for a fact. And
so,my new outlook is that the only person we can really "please" is ourself.
Trying to please anyone else is pretty futile!
The rewards of truly loving and supporting our friends are astronomical!
So,for those of you who have decided I am an old woman without a lick of
sense, just pretend that I got into my Long Island Ice tea and that Madeline
and I are having a limitless party. (It's Lue's fault! That lady knows her
wine!)
For those of you who really care, I can't wait to see you again.
Meanwhile, my heart goes out to my sister who lost her husband on Monday but
is still unbelievably blessed with two sons, two daughters-in-law and three
grandchildren. Would that we were all so blessed to be surrounded by love
in all those really difficult times.
Meanwhile,remember, cancer isn't all bad! I can eat whatever I want,
whenever I want even though I can't taste much. But for those of you who
live in MN or own a plane, there is a bakery that moved down from
heaven,literally and set up shop in Plymouth with a second shop in Anoka
called Truffles and Tortes. I think I' walk barefoot through a blizzard to
get one of their raspberry tortes. Now, there's something worth dying for!
Of course, that is next to my sister-in-law's rice pudding, my sister's
"fresh lefse,". Brandy's caramel pecan rolls (which I'm told are as good as
my mother's ( a fact she still has to prove to me), all of Harriet's
cookies, which are being known in a five state area, my brother's jams and
butter bridle candy, Bruce's pearl onion dish, heaven is just a mouthful
away. Of course if you are blessed to life in fish and shellfish country,
you are already too blessed for your own good! Dungeness crab, halibut,
smoked salmon - you guys got to learn to share the wealth! You are already
living in heaven, after all!
Arlo, Mikey,Tasha, Widget continue to thrive and survive. We are all growing
older but I am so glad I'm not living with a thirty year old hunk of burning
love. I couldn't keep up!
We are doing great here! I got a high-class purple walker which doubles as
a chair on occasion. I'm trying to find the wooden cane Arlo made for his
Mother, and maybe at some point, I might need a wheel chair and all those
embarrassing bathroom accouterments.
Meanwhile, know that Arlo and I laugh and enjoy every positive moment we
are given,
There is one favor you can do for me - give one another a lot of love,
forget about past mistakes once you've learned whatever lesson you BOTH
needed to learn, and try your best to treat others the way you want to be
treated. Old ladies get to say all this stuff because when everything is
said and done, " all we need is love (and a big mouth)!"
(cue Beatles)
Love
Jeanette
P.S. I don't know if I'll be sending out another update, but even if I do,
you do NOT HAVE TO READ THEM. God willing and the creek don't rise, I might
even have something interesting to write about sometime in the near future!
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