Pipe Dreams

Well, summer seemed to just fly out the window and fall arrived without even so much as a courtesy knock on the front door. Not even October, and it was 44 degrees this morning! Brr… Where in the world did I put my electric blanket? Worse yet, where are my thermal socks?
 
Time anymore just whisks by so quickly that I lose perspective on almost everything. My great nieces have grown from adorably cute to absolutely beautiful, my furry best friend Seeker has grown from precocious pup to rickety old dog, and my joints are calcifying as I type. Why, as kids, did we always wish we were older? And why, as adults, do we often forget to just stop and enjoy the moment?
 
I have been on an emotional roller coaster – and for impromptu clarification, I have never liked the damn things. As of late, however, I am juggling the terrifying realizations of friends’ parents who are struggling, friends who are facing life-changing circumstances, and personal challenges that, like always, seem to just back me up against a wall. Is life always just a pipe dream? I cannot seem to recall a time when everything just . . . worked. And in hindsight, of course, it probably never did.
 
I had the pleasure of accompanying an older gentleman this past week to his “Chair Exercise” class at a long-term facility. I watched as he and his compadres worked diligently to “row the boat, play the piano, lift the weights, and climb the stairs.” They all counted from one to ten on each exercise with great enthusiasm as music from the 1950s and 60s played in the background.
 
And what made it supremely spectacular was, that every once in a while, the exercise halted abruptly as everyone in the room had to sing along in full voice with an oldie, but goodie! It was one of those “moments” that I believe everyone should one day stop and enjoy.
 
At the end of this exercise, even I felt more invigorated and purposeful. I complimented my gentleman friend on his earnest, complaint-free participation and expressed my hope that it would help to strengthen his muscle tone. His response floored me: “Well, I’ve always known, if it makes you stronger, just do it.” That, my friends, is perspective in a nutshell.  
 
And somehow, just like that, my roller coaster came to a quiet stop. I am never more emotionally and spiritually enriched than by the wise words and actions of someone facing challenges far more threatening than mine.
 
And at the end of that horrifying amusement park ride was an email congratulating me on surpassing 5,000 followers! Amid surgeries, writer’s block, and job changes I still managed to touch the hearts of new readers. I am both amazed and thankful! Readers – you are the heroes of my day!
 
I may have survived the roller coaster, but Lord please keep me off the Scrambler! Ah, but that is fodder for yet another rant.
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