New beginnings...

New Year's Eve.
And someone died this morning. Someone I knew.
Someone I always looked forward to seeing.
Someone who meant a lot to a lot of people.

Two weeks ago he entered the hospital. Days later, the family was told he had cancer. Throughout his entire body. The fastest-growing cancer they had ever seen.
He was literally moments from eternity.
And he was ushered in this morning.

2012 begins soon...
      and many people won't celebrate who celebrated New Year's a year ago.
They passed away this year. 2011 was their last year on this earth. Many probably had no clue that this would be their last year on this planet; after all, how many of us think about that as we blow horns, cheer, and kiss love ones when the moment strikes at midnight and we sing "Auld Lang Syne"?

Morbid as it may sound, my own thoughts roll that way as I wait for the midnight moment to arrive...
     and 2012 to be ushered in.
Who won't make it to 2013?
How many of my loved ones will pass from this life to eternity this year?
Will I be one?
Will that change any of my plans, goals, dreams, or resolutions?

No. I will happily begin this new year content and excited about what lies ahead and...
     if God should take me home this year...

Happy New Year! :) 

Acceptance

Accepted.

You are - or you're not. You do - or you don't. 

We long for acceptance - to belong - to be part. 

We long to be embraced for ourselves... in spite of ourselves. 

Acceptance. 

It is the true thing everyone longs for. The one thing everyone craves. 

To walk in a room and to be greeted by everyone with hugs and smiles. 

And, in that small passing moment, you truly know you're loved, needed, and accepted... :)

 ~ Rena Harmon

There may come a time when, try as you might, you realize that there are times and places when and where you won't be accepted. The pain of the reality can bite, can hit, can land and grow from a tiny seed to a huge and strong root of bitterness and discouragement. 

Don't let it. Smile. Be willing to get up, smile one last time, hold you head up...

and walk away.

‎At some point you will realize that you have done too much for someone and that 

the only next possible step to do is to stop. 

Leave them alone. Walk away. It’s not like you’re giving up, and it’s not like you shouldn’t try. 

It’s just that you have to draw the line of determination from desperation. 

What is truly yours would eventually be yours, and what is not, no matter how hard you try, 

will never be. 

 ~ unknown, Wisdom Quotes

The tear.

This morning I had an encounter that filled me with emotion. Have you ever been there? In a place – in a time – in a realm that fills you to overwhelming with emotion that just wants to…

Move. 

Move through you and move out of you. And, when it does, relief can thankfully fill and refresh so you can go forward to your next place – time – realm. Reality must be dealt with, so emotional interludes must pass.

But something remained this morning.

As memories rushed through me of days gone by, encounters shared, and life lived, emotions played their accompaniment. The symphony of life once lived in the past played briefly as I was enroute to where I needed to be and, as I prepared to leave the memories behind in my car and enter reality, I looked down.

One round circle looked back at me from my lap.

It was as small as a paper-punched hole; like a piece of my heart punched through that remained as one spilled tear in my lap. I couldn’t wipe it up, blot it up, or get rid of it. It simply stared at me, as a reminder of my humanity.

You can leave a piece of history behind, but you can’t leave memories. They will remain, ingrained in your inner fibers, and may exhibit themselves from time to time as pieces of your heart flow through your tears.

One tear. The reminder. It was a beautiful memory.