Life as it Unfolds

From the Sea to the Desert

It's the day after Thanksgiving where I am usually one of the first at the door as "black friday" commences but there isn't much choice in this small desert town except for Walmart and a few independent shops. Today, I decided to stay away from the retail madness and take a long walk instead. I noticed the absolutely clear blue sky above me and the red rocks of Sedona to the north. Then I suddenly longed for the water. The beach and it's roaring waves. The salty air and the warm sand sifting through my toes. I thought about how I ended up in the desert, in a small town owning a beautiful home in the middle of a run down neighborhood. In the last four years I have learned to love and appreciate where I live. It's stark beauty, the changing seasons and the much slower pace.

I have many wonderful memories of the water. I remember the time I shuffled with the stingrays in the Caribbean Sea and snorkling with Clown Fish in Kawaii's Molokini Crater. I remember earning my advanced SCUBA certificate in the warm La Jolla canyon waters and frolicking up and down the California coastline. I remember playing with my children just south of the Rincon, one of the most famous surf spots in the world on long summer days.

The older I get, the more I appreciate my memories. I am rich with them. I have been all over the world and have had amazing experiences. I am the author of a book! Oh my god...I forgot about that. I have survived cancer.

The desert is a good place for me. I imagined myself here in a place like this a long time ago...

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow."  ~Melody Beattie

Today, I am grateful for everything as it is right now. I am grateful for the chilly November air. I am grateful that my children are happy and healthy. I am grateful to have a loving husband and to have the opportunity to be a loving wife. I am grateful that I am alive and feeling healthy. I am grateful for the peach fuzz on my head. I am grateful for the roof over my head. I am grateful for the friends I have near and far. I am grateful for the air I am breathing. I am grateful that I can hear and feel the music. I am grateful for this moment, a speck of time where everything is at peace just as it is.

Together, We Did It!

After months of training and a few set backs, I was able to reach my fundraising goal and participate in the Susan G. Komen 3-day walk in Arizona. Even though I was unable to walk the entire 60 miles due to health reasons, I was able to cross the finish line! I was inspired by the thousands of walkers who also raised the money and courageously walked 60 miles to help put an end to breast cancer. As a five year survivor of breast cancer, my heartfelt thanks goes out to everyone who donated and participated in this event.
Thank you so much!