With that said, I recently felt a great regret. (I am very new to this practice of mindfulness and hence still need much practice). We found out that an elderly neighbor of ours, from our previous neighborhood, had passed away. His daughters reached out to us because they knew how much their father loved our kids. We were only neighbors for about 5 years, but in that time we had three girls and there were many, sunny days spent hanging with Mr. Tom, in his front yard. He would always sit in his driveway and we would visit, almost daily, from when the girls were babies until we moved away when they were 4.
At Tom's funeral, I was told by another neighbor that we broke Tom's heart by moving away. I knew this. In fact, when we were about to put the house up for sale, the hardest obstacle I faced, was telling Mr. Tom. I knew it would devastate him. His daughters told us that he had pictures of the girls throughout his house and he still talked about them all the time (we had moved away 6 years earlier). So this was a devastating regret for me. I was heart-broken over not making the effort, not finding the time, to visit with Mr. Tom with my daughters. I am always saying how short life is. We get too busy with the daily schedules of raising children and working full time. Somehow I lost the perspective and importance of visiting with a loved one. We went to the funeral and I saw a couple of the framed pictures of my girls that had been throughout Tom's house. I am so sorry Tom that we didn't visit you in the last 5 years. If I could have a re-do, I would make it a point to see you every summer and spend the evening talking with you, sitting in your driveway. I know you are having fun flying with the angels now!
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| We love you Mr. Tom!! |
Mindfully (and Hugging-ly) Yours,
Me
Motivational Moment:
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| http://magickalgraphics.com/ |
Tonight when I was surfing the top AOL stories of the day, one from Huffington Post caught my eye. It was a husband's photojournalistic memoir to his wife, who died from breast cancer (Angelo and Jen Merendino). Just 5 months after they were married, they received the horrible news that Jen had breast cancer. The pictures are a wonderful, touching memoir of Jen and Angelo's Journey. It was heartbreaking to see her tombstone at the end of the photos! (It was also a reality check to see that Jen was born the same year that I was and a reinforcement to live for each day). Thank you both for sharing your journey. Check it out at: http://mywifesfightwithbreastcancer.com/ . I am sending out love and hugs to Jen's family and friends who have had to endure the loss of her.
My mother-in-law was diagnosed with breast cancer 10 years ago; she was considered a survivor. 5 years ago, she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, which she finally succumbed to a year and a half ago, after one hell of an impressive battle. I always told her that she made cancer look easy. She never complained; never seemed to be in pain. She was one of the strongest women I have known. Throughout her battle, she was a wonderful grandma to my daughters, and that was priceless.
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| http://magickalgraphics.com/ |
This Motivational Moment is dedicated to all people who have received the devastating diagnoses of a terminal disease as well as to the friends and family of those people. It is for the love and strength and hope that overflows during these difficult times.
