It is good to be home.

Good health and normalcy are, methinks, highly underrated.

Headin' home in the morning. Mom's been home since yesterday (another post later will describe how we "sprung" her from "the Home" in record time! You go mom!!!) and all is going well - 'cept my dad has a cold and a temp of 101...

Kris will be by after work and they have instructions to call ASAP if anything strange happens.

Looking forward to seeing my wonderful husband, dog Jake, Meggie, and maybe Emily if I get home in time.

It's been good to be able to be here. Thanks to all who offered up prayers, Reiki, and positive thoughts. You carried me and Mom is out of danger.

Divine Spirit is indeed good! (Ditto all my dear friends!)

Mom's amazing and is leaping towards recovery. Her hands have been swollen and extremely painful - turns out to be gout, so with meds being IV'd in she should get some relief overnight and feel much better. She might even get released from the hospital tomorrow and has agreed to go to a rehab place for a week or so to build up her strength before heading home - primarily for Dad's sake since he's coming up on 89...can't risk having him get worn down worrying about her initial recovery.

So...it appears all the prayers are being answered and the panicky little 6 year old inside of me is feeling some peace. Yes, I'm 57 years old...but she's my mama and I feel 6 and scared when she's ill. I don't expect that will ever change, huh?

Oops. It appears that the last post exposed my recent penchant for Minimalism, huh? ;-)

I'll be away for a bit tending to my Mom and Dad. Mom had some sort of weird whatever happen on Monday - or the night before? - and has been in the hospital. Doctors at first thought menengitis or encephelitus (which I ain't gonna look up the spelling for right now because I is POOPED!) but the tests came back negative. Now they are thinking a ministroke but aren't sure. She had a seizure in the hospital Tuesday night but none since. The anti-seizure meds have her a bit loopy so it's hard to tell what's druggie behavior and what's her. But she's got her sense of humor -so much so that it took me a minute to realize she was hallucinating when she asked me what "all those white bumps were" on my face...and on Dad's. That happened right after she ate...and then today after she ate lunch my white bumps were back and she couldn't figure out why anyone would paint a hospital wall (which, in reality, was white) a crosshatched design of red and orange. (Well how the heck would I know??? I'm still trying to get the damned white spots on my face to go away!!!)

So tomorrow we will meet with the neurologist since he's the Main Man now that the cardiology and infectious disease types have given her a clean bill of health. Dad has found a "wonderful place" that accepts TRICARE and works with the hospital where he hopes she can go to gain her strength back (right side is weak - left, too but right more so) and we can work with an occupational therapist to get Mom ready to come home. She's a trooper with incredible patience and determination who seems content to spend a lo-o-o-ong time getting egg noodles and beef cubes into her mouth which, I explained to her, was "still in the center of her face slightly below her nose." She absolutely gave me The Mom Look at that, so I'm optimistic she's got what it takes to make a good recovery. If only so she can knock my block off...

Keep the prayers coming as you are inclined, though. She had just used up big bunches of energy getting back on her feet after her femur break and surgery to insert a titanium rod...she was back walking without a cane in just over a month! She'll have to dig deep to find additional energy to get over this setback, but if anyone can do what's called for it's her. What an inspiration and example.

So...I'll post when I can.

Gunman Slays 6 at N. Illinois University

How long will it take us to realize that until we, as a nation, take some action to control guns, we will see similar headlines, and experience similar losses of innocent lives, again and again and again and again?

Nothing will change until we change.

When will we learn the lesson in these events?

Here's a good place to learn about ways to help make a change.

Wishing you a happy day!

Thinking about Betsy today. About immortality. About the peace of the soul and peace in the world.

This story warmed my heart and made me smile...


Click here and then on the page that comes up, click "Go to music video"- and see how you feel after listening/watching it.

I know Betsy would have loved it!

Here's to dear friends and peace; in our hearts, our home, our universe...

Tomorrow is the anniversary of the passing of my high school friend, Betsy Wells. It seems right to post a poem by the Irish poet John O'Donohue who passed away last month. May it bring peace to you as you read it and remember those you have loved and lost.

On the Death of the Beloved

Though we need to weep your loss,
You dwell in that safe place in our hearts,
Where no storm or might or pain can reach you.

Your love was like the dawn
Brightening over our lives
Awakening beneath the dark
A further adventure of colour.

The sound of your voice
Found for us
A new music
That brightened everything.

Whatever you enfolded in your gaze
Quickened in the joy of its being;
You placed smiles like flowers
On the altar of the heart.
Your mind always sparkled
With wonder at things.

Though your days here were brief,
Your spirit was live, awake, complete.

We look towards each other no longer
From the old distance of our names;
Now you dwell inside the rhythm of breath,
As close to us as we are to ourselves.

Though we cannot see you with outward eyes,
We know our soul’s gaze is upon your face,
Smiling back at us from within everything
To which we bring our best refinement.

Let us not look for you only in memory,
Where we would grow lonely without you.
You would want us to find you in presence,
Beside us when beauty brightens,
When kindness glows
And music echoes eternal tones.

When orchids brighten the earth,
Darkest winter has turned to spring;
May this dark grief flower with hope
In every heart that loves you.

May you continue to inspire us:

To enter each day with a generous heart.
To serve the call of courage and love
Until we see your beautiful face again
In that land where there is no more separation,
Where all tears will be wiped from our mind,
And where we will never lose you again.

- John O’Donohue

Many blessing,
Karen Anne

I'll get back to regular writing - I promise! But as I'm still recovering from that dastardly bug, I thought I'd entertain us all with another video clip. This one seems appropriate since politics is in the news 24/7 right now. So watch away (but for those in VA: Only after you've gone out and voted for Barama - okay?) Enjoy!

For more from Uncle Jay (they are all great!) click HERE.

Oh how cool is this???

I was arranging the wee bowls that Barbara Diduk gave me, and my Hotei insisted I place one atop his head. You can hear him laughing even when you're upstairs!

A bouquet of pink tulips gives me hope that, indeed, spring is just around the corner. What new possibilities will blossom when their time is ripe???