☃ Pressed for Time ☃

Here we go again...

We didn’t get the news we were hoping for (or even the news we were cautiously expecting) from my dad’s surgery today. It looks like there is infection in the bone, which means he’s back to non-weight bearing and it’ll be longer than we hoped before they can attempt a second fusion. We’ll know the official results of the test by Monday, so your prayers are appreciated for that.

I haven’t gotten to talk to him yet (he just got out of surgery a few hours ago), but if he’s proven anything through all of this — besides the immense danger of motorcycles — it’s that he’s probably the strongest man I know. He’s been through so much frustration since his accident and sometimes I feel like he just can’t catch a break (no pun intended), but he always seems to stay optimistic and trusting that, despite how long it seems to be taking, things will be fine and that he’s fortunate just still even be here considering how severe his wreck was. Shouldn’t it be us having to remind him of that? For that, he makes me not only proud, but also thankful to have such a strong, patient and faithful dad who almost always manages to keep a smile on his face, despite the circumstances.

As long as he can be semi-walking again by turkey hunting season, he’ll stay that way. Otherwise, I’m afraid the man may invent a waterproof, four-wheel-drive scooter.

No, seriously. Did I mention he’s also determined and stubborn? If not, remind me sometime to tell you the story of the buck he shot after his first surgery…

My Tuesday

Cons:

• Took Temp the Wondercat for his annual, routine checkup. I found out he has FIV and the doctor begins explaining what we’re dealing with by beginning the conversation with “euthanasia.” Had no idea how attached I was to the goofy little fur ball until that point.
• Had a rough day at work. The Temp news still sinking in and him scratching at the door and the blinds wanting to go out, knowing he never can again, didn’t help.
• I was put on another month of adding nine pills a day to my pill army.
• I blew my “diet” eating Mexican.
• LOST made my brain hurt and Jonathan successfully called every detail of what was going to happen (including a very plausible series finale) and I, per usual, was 0 for 37.

Pros:

• My dad seems to have no infection in his foot, so hopefully his surgery tomorrow will go much more smoothly, and maybe, just maybe, they can actually fix him this time around. Poor guy, four (or five?) surgeries in a year and a half just to find out that being able to move his ankle is, in fact, not a good thing when it’s supposed to be fused. Prayers tomorrow for him are appreciated, by the way.
• My mom tolerates my endless rambling about nothing when I’m upset because she knows I need to talk about nothing to keep from being sad. Even when she has lots of work to do herself. (Yes, Ma, I heard you try to end the conversation several times as I was starting a new topic and cut you off from getting off the phone. I ignored it intentionally. Thanks for that.)
• After talking to a few friends whose cats also have FIV, I learned a lot more about it, including that he can live a pretty healthy life regardless.
• My husband proved, yet again, he’s way too smart for me.
• I got to eat Mexican for the first time in weeks.
• LOST is one episode closer to answering my questions.
• I can go to bed now. :)

Namaste

So, I don’t know if you’ve heard of this show called “LOST,” but there was this one time that I watched an episode of it. Actually, I’ve watched five seasons’ worth of episodes of it. It’s a sickness, really. I digress.

Anyway… In this one episode, these people whose plane crashed on this magical, tropical island filled with smoke monsters and polar bears blew up this metal door, crawled down a ladder into what was inevitably a dark hole of doom and watched a few VHS tapes when they got down there. You know, just for kicks and giggles. Then, this Asian guy in a lab coat on the tapes told them to push this button every 108 minutes or, more or less, the world would explode.

He ended this video with the word, “Namaste.”

Obviously, I’m neither Asian (well, to some that may be debatable) nor Hindu, nor am I am from the Eastern Hemisphere, so I’d never heard this word before, but I assumed it was some sort of polite salutation and didn’t think much of it, aside from using it in casual “LOST” conversation here and there.

Come to find out, there’s a lot more to it. I suppose part of the reason we (or maybe it was just me) didn’t know exactly what it meant is because there is no English word, or even a Western Hemispheric word, that properly translates it. The actual definition depends on whether you’re Hindu, Buddhist or some other form of Indian heritage.

But, in English terms, here’s the gist of its definition:

“I honor the place in you in which the entire Universe dwells, I honor the place in you which is of Love, of Integrity, of Wisdom and of Peace. When you are in that place in you, and I am in that place in me, we are One.”

Which is more commonly narrowed down to “All that is best and highest in me greets/salutes all that is best and highest in you.”

Wow. Apparently Dr. Chang had a lot more riding on that word that I originally perceived. I’m sure, just as it was originally lost on me, the word has lost (HAHA!) a large part of its meaning along the way, like the word love has. I say I love “LOST” but in the same breath, I can also say I love my husband. Huh?

Regardless which God you’re referring to, and I love that it even leaves the possibility of the God within me being different than the God you believe is in you. Whether you believe in the same God as me or not, I still appreciate what you believe and what you believe is your best. It’s just simple human unity. We just somehow manage to make that simple human unity so hard by adding judgment to anything that is different than what we believe.

I wish we all treated one another with the type of respect that it wrapped up in this one simple word. I wish we had an English word for it.

For those of you, like me, who will be spending your evening in front of a television watching a season premier of some show that starts tonight, 4 8 15 16 23 42.

Oh, and Namaste to each of you.

Why did the smoke monster cross the island?

To get to the Others’ side.

Stretch out your arms

I have an acquaintance that I went to high school with. She’s a few years older than me and has two adorable twin children.

As most mothers I know, she posts the adorable things that her children say to each other on her facebook status, and, aside from the overwhelming adorableness, I’m amazed with the profoundness of some of their quotes, especially for three-year-olds. Even at their young age, I’m pretty sure they understand love. This happened months ago, and I still think about it all the time.

Her children, Miller (girl) and Riggs (boy), are best friends. They say so. Recently, on her status, she posted where Miller said (paraphrasing), “Mommy, stretch out your arms.” When Holli asked why, Miller replied, “Because I want to tell Riggs how much I love him and my arms aren’t big enough!”

In a time where we think families are falling apart, children have poor examples in front of them and our futures are based on bad decisions by these children, take comfort in the fact that there are great parents like Holli and her husband (and countless others that I know) that truly know how to show love to their children, live that love in front of them and teach them to share that same love.

I know someone else who stretched out His arms to show His love, too.

I know they’re only three years old and they’ve got a lot of time in front of them, but if every parent took the time to teach their children a love that they feel and comprehend so deeply but can’t yet express, our world would change, two stretched out arms at a time.

Take some time this week to stretch our your arms and show your love, whether it be to the homeless man that you pass in your warm car every day, to a spouse or old friend you’ve mistreated or to young children who need to experience this kind of love. Or just open your arms and give someone who’s hurting a hug. And when your arms aren’t big enough, use His arms to show His love instead.