My Challenge to You!!

No matter how many things go wrong or don't work out as planned, I just tell myself "It could always be worse."  When I see people on a daily basis who are homeless, who can't pay their bills, who have no one to care for them, who don't have coats, who are taken advantage of, who don't have a sound mind, who are sick and can't afford to see a doctor, who are lost in our system, who don't believe in Santa and the Easter Bunny because their life has been terribly miserable by age five, my problems are minimal.  I challenge everyone reading this to step up and help out any way you can.  Whether that is serving a meal at a shelter, making sure kids have coats, volunteering at an animal shelter, donating your time and not just your money to make sure people are taken care of and NEVER SETTLING to hear "That's just the way it is..." as an answer to some of these problems.  GET INVOLVED!!!  This is my challenge to you- ignorance is not bliss and ignoring problems only allows them to exist.

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays to everyone!  Work continues on the house- now I am just down to the little things which is really nice.  Hopefully I will be in by January 4th, at least that's the plan.  Ginny continues to defy the odds.  Her kidneys are okay, but her liver has suffered due to required medications.  She is still her perky self, she just takes more naps.  Thanks to everyone's well wishes for the monkey.

A Dog's Tale

 Here is an update on the girls. Ginny's one eye is better, the other got worse and required another medication.  Along with that, I am waiting to hear if her kidneys are failing her now. The little monkey can't catch a break lately. Meanwhile, Ms. Gracie made an appearance at the police Christmas party where she wowed the crowd with her tricks and good behavior (even when the baby pulled her hair).  She trumped Santa with the kids! Can you tell I love my girls?

Blessings

It was relayed to me this week by the vet that Ms. Ginny would not be a candidate for an eye removal if it came to that...her right eye worsened over last weekend but her left eye responded to the medicine. That was the nice way of the vet telling me there would be nothing they could do if the new medicine didn't work. The thought of loosing Ginny breaks my heart, but I don't want her to be in pain or to suffer just so I have her around. I refuse to give up hope that she will improve and I think she refuses too. She is my little blessing.

Unconditional Love

I always had pets around as a kid. Once out of college I decided that I needed to be a pet owner so to the pound I went. Two cats and two dogs later, I find it quite interesting how attached I have become to my animals. Is it because I don't have kids? Am I just an animal lover? Or is it the ability to help animals escape from the shelter? The more I think about it it's none of those. They give unconditional love- very simple I guess. My Ginny was diagnosed with glaucoma yesterday and the vet says she would be unable to go through surgery if needed due to her heart condition. Unfortunately my contractor took the emotional brunt of that news (he had bad timing yesterday). But my mother pointed out that Ginny is a fighter- she was abused, starved to bones, battles a heart condition, allergies, blindness and arthritis daily but she is the sweetest soul on Earth. So I will continue to fight for my Ginny as long as she is a happy girl and not suffering. If everyone gave the type of love Ginny gives, what a great world it would be.

It's Always Something

Life is about the journey, not the end destination. Often I allow the "little things" to build up and become mountains instead of the molehills they are. As my life has changed considerably this past year, I try and see the good and learn from what I am experiencing- wisdom doesn't just happen after all. There is a reason for everything that happens- I just don't always see it at the time. Hindsight becomes 20/20 though. No one's life is perfect nor should it be. There is always going to be something to work on or towards, but I can appreciate the moment now.

At a Loss

One of my downfalls is that I like to be in control of my life instead of just allowing it to happen. Sometimes it's a good thing but usually it's a lot of undue stress. When I was nine I took a photo of a wedding dress out of a magazine and kept it until I was twenty-five. I always believed that I would find my soulmate and I did and waited until I was thirty-four to get married. I truly believed with all my being that I would be married until death. Again, it goes back to that not being in control of the situation or of someone else. 2009 has been the roughest year of my life and crying has become a daily norm. I have never had a broken heart until now- nor did I believe that I ever would. When I commit there is no question for me- you do what is necessary to be together. The hard part comes when the love of your life doesn't feel the same. So the daily struggle now is to forgive and move forward instead of living in the past. Memories are dangerous things that trap us in what use to be instead of what is.