THANKFULNESS

It is one of those soggy Spring days. A little dreary, but with such promise of things to come. I am feeling good. Although, the loss of my brother Garth is on my mind. It is good. Death of our bodies is part of life. There is no death of our being. We celebrated his birthday with a picnic Saturday. It was an impromptu affair, with Naomi, Greg, Adam and Elijah [and us] in attendance. We sat out on the deck for most of the afternoon. It was a glorious day. It didn't get chilly until dusk.

We had our oven go on the blink Thursday. The repairman couldn't come out until this Morning. We have an old restaurant stove. Its age is meaningless because they were built to last forever. We didn't realize how much we used the oven until we were without it for three days. The repairman was out this Morning and he got it working in a short time. A thermo-couple needed replacement. It is a lovely experience having folks in to repair things and they contribute to your household. It is a pleasure observing folks who know what they are doing. He knew exactly what was wrong, by my description on the phone, and was able to hone right in on the problem. That was a good experience.

What I feel greatest about, is our optimism about Jamie's health issues. I had mentioned before that she had a number of troubling symptoms. She is a researcher and she soon zeroed in on her problem; sleep apnea, it explained the problems she was having. She scheduled a sleep study. Then.................. she had to cancel. She developed a disc problem in her neck and the required medication precluded her participation in the study. She was just about over that problem, when at Christmas, she fell off a stool and dislocated her shoulder, [she was reaching to get something off a high shelf]. She was making a good recovery when her shoulder was re-injured in late January. In order to sleep well she had to take some pain medication. She may have only needed it two or three times a week; but she was unable to predict it well enough to do the sleep study, which requires an absence of that type of medication.

She was able to do the sleep study Friday night. She definitely has sleep apnea. She won't get her device until this Friday, but we are very optimistic that a long struggle is coming to an end. In this last year, Jamie has researched, everything there is, about the symptoms she was having. She already knew a lot about vitamins, nutrition and biochemistry; now she knows a great deal more. She is going to have to write a book and rent herself out as a consultant.

I will continue my discussion about our need for relearning on Wednesday. I hope everyone is bearing up okay, with the craziness in the world. It is hard to believe there could be so much insanity. I can't believe this election campaign. I keep expecting a certain orange colored candidate to announce, “I was just kidding. It is just a joke! I don't really want to be president.” There was a series of interviews, with some of his followers, published in the paper Sunday. It appears that most of them are afraid for themselves and the country and they see him as an antidote. It is amazing what fear can do and how it can be exploited by those who would.

The craziness won't last. People are waking up in droves. There certainly will be some chaos for awhile. However, if we keep focusing on what we love and eschew fear, we will create our own paradise around us. Let us constantly express our thanks for this beautiful Mother Earth and a Great Benevolent Universe.

All is Well.

Love and Peace, Gregg