Joy, hope and inspiration here I come

[MaryBKAriz]

Hi, dear friends, 

Yesterday was one of my really bad days. For some odd reason today is MUCH better. I still am still wonky-headed but much more functional. I have gotten a lot of things done today and realized how much I appreciate being able to scrub and pick up and wash and.... LITTLE things that we all just do. I appreciate doing them today without suffering. I am going to make a pact with myself that for the rest of my life I will really try to appreciate the days I can do little things and days when I can do bigger things and on days where I can't do much I want to concentrate on doing what will make me feel better. During all of these different conditions I want to really appreciate the smiles of others, the beauty of the world we live in and spiritual growth.

I know this may all sound corny, but I really want to build my new life. Putting it into writing makes it more real. I know sometimes the path I head out on have and will be destroyed. Then I will need to forge a new path. Perhaps it will even be better than the old path. I know somedays will be the pits and I will try to stare them in the "face", deal with them and then get back on a better path. Is this making sense?

What are your plans for your future?

Mary

[MAlegant]

Boy, I don't know if I can be inspirational to myself or to anyone else, but you're right.  Got to have a plan, which must include being here to complain! I plan to deal with my issues with a good attitude, and not to let the direction of my life be dictated by how I feel on a given day.  I will fly, run, dream, joke, play, sing, laugh and cry, as much as possible, take drugs when necessary, and enjoy my family and friends and my job.  That's my plan, although I reserve the right to alter it when necessary. Also part of the plan!
Marci

[Jim Scott]

Mary:

I certainly admire your determination to appreciate the world and the people around you along with what you have and can do instead of feeling miserable and complaining about what you don't have and/or cannot do on any given day.  Your recognition of the fact that our plans are not always God's plans and that we must be 'flexible' in our thinking is spot on, in my opinion, which is the only one I have to offer. 

I encourage even those who reject spirituality and avoid 'religion' that taking charge of your attitude and deciding each day to be positive is not always easy but definitely advantageous to better healing and, ultimately, a better life. 

Jim

[leapyrtwins]

Great topic, Mary.

I hope to get back to running in the new year.  It's something I truly love and haven't done in a few years - too many long hours at work, lots of stress from a nasty divorce, no inspiration or motivation, brain surgery, etc.  But time is short, life is good and I need to stop talking about it and as they say at Nike "Just do it" 

I hope that by the time the 2009 Symposium comes around I'll be able to run along the lakeshore; something I've never done, but have always wanted to do.

Good luck to both of us - and everyone else 

Jan

[wendysig]

Hi Mary,
In my opinion, the AN experience makes many of us take a good long look at ourselves and how we live our lives.  Most of us seem to have a renewed attitude and hope for our futures.  Having come through this experience, even those of us with some of the best outcomes have not been completely unscathed but have become more positve and stronger for having gone through it.  I have come to appreciate the little things in life again but  I also reserve the right to throw myself a very brief pity party on a particularly bad day.  But for the most part, I am thankful for my outcome, for the new direction in life  it has given me and for the friends, old and new who have stood by me and supported me. 

Wendy

[sgerrard]

Hi Mary,

The subject line of this post is a great statement of attitude. You are so full of sunshine sometimes.

I think I was already going through a transition to a new view of life before my little AN hit. Some of that was social and occupational, but aging played a pretty big part.

It started with eyesight and making the switch to progressive lens, which are basically like trifocals with no lines. That is something you need when presbyopia (aging eyes) gets added to your existing myopia (near sightedness) and astigmatism (non-spherical eye shape). It took several tries to get the prescription right. While doing that, it was discovered that I had elevated eye pressure, a warning sign for glaucoma. For the first time in my life, I started taking a medication every day, even if it is just one drop in each eye once a day. Meanwhile, the dentist decided it was time to remove my front teeth, which were barely hanging on from an accident 30 years ago, so I went through getting a bridge in front, including wearing a "flipper" in place of front teeth for two months. My doctor recommended I get a colonoscopy. I was getting older, and it was time to realize that.

Of course all of that quickly diminished in significance when I then got the AN diagnosis. But the course was already set, and the AN just cemented it in place. That new course has mainly been one of changing my focus from me, myself, and I, to other people - family, friends, and the community at large. I know Jan is big on making donations, and I have been doing more of that, and finding that the old adage is true - give, and you shall receive. Either time or money will work, or even both. I find that my spirit is always lifted when good things happen around me, and it is actually easy and painless to make some of those things happen, sometimes in the very simplest of ways. For instance, always let people cut in front of you when driving; they might have a good reason to hurry, it might cheer them up, and it will gladden your heart, reduce your stress, and make the world a little bit nicer.

In an earlier life, I once went through becoming certified as a high school teacher. One of my professors restated another old adage as: those who can't do, teach, and those who can't teach, teach teachers. The can't part is not necessarily skill level; it can also be due to age or medical conditions. It's a switch that many of us will probably need to make as we go along our new paths.

On another subject, I am also planning to buy a cane for my Dad for his 88th birthday in May, to celebrate his new hip. I like the copper and dark blue enamel look. How do I go about measuring the length?

Best wishes for a great new year in 2009.

Steve

[leapyrtwins]

I know Jan is big on making donations, and I have been doing more of that, and finding that the old adage is true - give, and you shall receive. Either time or money will work, or even both.

Steve -

I think that's wonderful - and if I even had a little to do with this decision, I'm glad I was a good influence on you 

Jan

[MaryBKAriz]

Hey Jan, You are a giving person for sure. I really appreciate that you were one of the first to contact me and always has great input, like how to post photos, etc. Thank you!

Hi Steve,

First, I have to laugh about the comment, "You are so full of sunshine.....sometimes".  Now mind you - you did not have the dots in there but I couldn't resist putting them there in my head as I read your post.  I really strive to be my sunshiny self. This year I really have not been as sunshiny. Gee, I don't know why not, but I am getting there again. You help inspire me in that. When I picture you in my head I do picture your smile and kind words. I agree when giving, one gets more back than they ever gave. Teaching is one of the best ways to do that and your teaching skill set is being used here with great success! I have done volunteer work a majority of my adult life (mostly for children) and I wouldn't trade it for the world. It has been such a blessing in my life.

It does seem that as we age the list of things that are less than perfect about our physical selves grows. That is a bummer, BUT I also feel like the knowledge learned and feeling comfortable in my own skin and not being afraid to "look stupid" has helped. Life is strange but each age group has great things to look forward to if the time is spent to notice and appreciate it.

As to the canes. If you go to Ebay, click "Advanced Search" next to the search number. On the far left side is a list, choose "Sellers", then put "MaryBKAZ" in the space and click and you should see what I have there now. BUT I would love to make one for him, I feel better experienced now to do a really nice one that you can choose everything specialized for him. Then I can put it on Ebay with a special title and you can purchase it via the special title I give it. I go through PayPal - PM me and we can work it out. I would be REALLY be thrilled to do one for you. Since my Mom here is 88 now it is special to honor someone who has really learned so many life lessons. I am doing these canes for the creative endeavor, as an uplifting boost to people that need canes, as well as sometimes to make them fun. I am not really getting a profit off them, which is perfectly fine for now. I just need to pay for my new hobbie. I also will put some new ones up in the next 10 days.

Happy New Year!!!!! Good Riddance 2008!

Mary