Hello, World!

I am very new at this "blog" thing - but have wanted to do it for a long, long time. It is a new way to journal or think "out-loud" rather than just in my head. I need that in my life right now as I sort though some things that have happened over the past few months. 1 year and 8 days ago, my Mama passed away - rather suddenly. 101 days later, Dad went to be with Mama and with his most loved, Jesus. Mama died on April 21, 2007 and Dad on July 31, 2007. He went "Home" just in time to celebrate their 57th wedding anniversary together; they never celebrated one apart. Their anniversary was on August 5. I don't think Dad wanted to be alive w/o Mama on that day.

In the middle of those two very difficult life events, my husband of six years filed for a divorce. I was totally blindsided. I probably would have realized there was an affair going on, had I not been so busy; but Mama and Dad needed our constant care - those of us available to help them. For months and months, we were "on call" any time, day or night to help Dad with Mama. She had Alzheimer's; a horrible disease. Dad had Pulmonary Fibrosis and was on oxygen 24/7. One of us went over every day to help Mama get dressed, help Dad with the house, laundry and some of the cooking. That way, he also was able to leave the house for awhile - a break he really needed. When Dad had handled all he could in a day's time, he would call one or sometimes two of us girls to come over to the house and help him calm Mama down. She would be crying and looking for her husband, her parents, her house, etc. She didn't recognized Dad the last few months of her life - up until about a week before she died. Even then, she didn't call him by name, but would tell him (and us children) that he was her husband and she loved him. Dad just soaked that up like a sponge; he SO badly needed to hear those words.

I guess, while I was busy with sick, aging parents, my husband (whom I thought was on the same page with me) was out having fun elsewhere. So, I had to look for an apartment, attend to a now lonlier and sicker father, pack my belongings and move them. I got the boxes moved in (thank you, Brenda and Chuck, and two of my sisters, Jodi (and Dan) and Barbara June). I didn't have time to get very much unpacked when Dad died. Then, 2 days after his funeral - when all the out-of town/state siblings had went back home, the three of us that were local, began the LONG, HARD job of sorting and emptying out Mom and Dad's house; 57 years worth of accumulation! It took us all of August, September and October...well, we sold/closed on the house on the 27th of October; so basically 3 months ! That was one job I hope NEVER to have to do for anyone again~!

Thanks to a merciful, comforting God, my siblings, my very caring children and grandchildren, my Church Family and my WONDERFUL group of Church Sisters, I have come a LONG, LONG way down the road since those three traumatic events. I know I'm not done traveling that road, but thank God, I'm moving ahead! There were days I wondered if I'd ever move forward again, rather than backward - but I have made a lot of progress; there are times that I actually find myself "really laughing ~~ from my heart and soul - not just my mouth! I can sing Praise and Worship songs to God and feel and mean the wordsf from deep within. He IS faithful!

So, that is where I am as I start this journey with keyboard and screen. The boxes are all unpacked and eveything is hung on the walls, and a couple of rooms even got a coat of paint on them!
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"We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves."
2 Corinthians 4:7 -NLT