November 2, 2009 "...celebrate everything"

  

This year we were members of the rock band KISS. Porter’s into KISS, mostly because his best buddy Liam is into KISS (which is also why Porter has defected from the Patriots to the Bengals).  I started with basic black, then embellished with lots of silver. Clint, always a little reluctant, helped with the masks. (I should clarify that he’s not reluctant to help, just to the idea of having to dress up.)
Halloween isn’t really one of our favorite holidays. It’s a holiday that kind of creeps up on us. All of a sudden it’s here and then we’re stressed to complete costumes. But the actual dressing up, hanging out with friends, and trick-or-treating is very fun. And it’s a reason to celebrate, right?

“Until further notice, celebrate everything…” Just last week I was given that saying on a sign made for me by my dear friend’s dear mother. Celebrating everything is what I do a lot of the time. I feel like “celebrating” the different aspects of my life, all the different situations I find myself in, all the people I associate with, and all that I learn along the way. That may sound a little cheesy, or like overkill, but I mean it.

I had a hard day last Friday, probably the first real “bad” day since chemo ended. But it wasn’t too bad, just a little on the unpleasant side compared to all the wonderful days I’ve had over the past two years. And it was actually a buildup of several situations over a few weeks added to a sleep deprived state that finally made me hit a wall. I just let some things get to me that I shouldn’t have regarding interactions with colleagues. In the midst of my pity party, someone said something to me that helped me snap out it. “I can understand how you feel bad about not having any friends,” at work. What? Wait a minute, is that what it sounds like I’m saying? What I meant was that I’m just not really enjoying some of the treatment I’m getting from some of my colleagues. And guess what, they’re not my friends, and thank goodness. Not so sure that I want mean people to be my friends. And another thing, I do have some great friends that I work with, and that’s where my focus and energy should be.
So, I quickly refocused on the friends that are in my heart, both at work and elsewhere, and I became so overcome with emotion so quickly, it really felt as though my heart would burst. I really am so incredibly fortunate to have such wonderful people in my life. And that’s something absolutely worth celebrating.

“… celebrate everything…” because you never know when the event, person, item, relationship, etc… will be gone.