Where Have I Been?

The first thing I would like to do is apologize for my absence. It was not planned; it just happened. Life happens, right?

Sometimes we lay out a plan and everything goes according to our plan. More often, we lay out a plan and unplanned things get in our way. Life gets in our way. That may be good or bad; it just is.

Anyhow, where have I been the last couple months?

July – The great news is I enjoyed an Alaskan cruise! We had this cruise planned for a year.

  • I was working an unusual schedule because Greg and I were leaving for vacation on July 21st and we would be gone for two weeks. I had to fit in all my monthly visits in less days/weeks.
  • July’s weekly posts were going to focus on fruits since July 09012016_AKPictureis National Blueberry Month. I didn’t manage to write one post with my busier than usual work schedule. I couldn’t beat myself up over this; I had to let it go.
  • I planned to keep up with my daily posts on vacation. That just didn’t work out because I didn’t pull out my PC daily and I wasn’t comfortable using my phone for all the posts. Again, I had to let it go.
  • In July, I physically went to Washington and Alaska.

August – The sad news is that my father passed away.

  • Before we left on vacation, I was looking forward to a “normal” schedule when we returned. My August turned out to be a well-laid-out plan that didn’t go as planned.
  • We woke up in Seattle after our cruise to a phone call that my dad had died. We left Seattle early to get home and be with my mom.
  • While it is difficult to see the positives during a time like this, I felt it was important to do so. Here are some of my positives:
    o While not the best reason to see family, it was great to visit with aunts and uncles, my brothers, and my nephews and niece.
    o I am thankful that this didn’t happen during the cruise.
    o My parents had planned their memorial services several years ago so this made it easier for my mom to fulfill what she knew my dad wanted. (It is so much easier to handle this ahead of time and I am reminded again that I need to do more work documenting my own celebration of life.)
  • In August, I mentally went to heaven.

Carl Martins Funeral Pics 008 - Copy

Now it is a new month and I am doing my best to get back into the swing of things. I am not perfect. I will miss some daily posts. I will miss some weekly posts. I will do my best and that is all any of us can do. So, please forgive me when I do miss a post. It means something unplanned got in my way. Maybe it was something good, maybe something bad; it just is.

Thank you for your support!
Michele

by Michele Spear