Thank You

They say that when one door closes, another door opens.

And that with age comes wisdom.

That even under the harshest of conditions, life will flourish.

That although our world can sometimes seem challenging, there is always something new waiting on the horizon.

That how we chose to deal with life's adversities, overcome them, and move forward is what makes us who we are.

That even amidst the chaos, there is beauty...

Calm...

Incredible strength!

And most of all, compassion!

I can't begin to thank you all enough for your wonderful emails and comments filled with the love, kindness, support and compassion that have carried me through the months, and most especially the last few weeks!  It means more than any of you will ever know, and for that I say THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart!

I've been without a computer for over a week now since the laptop we bought didn't work and had to be returned.  Our desktops are still out of commission and I'm not sure when I'll have a "real" keyboard and a mouse again...which I sorely miss!

Ms. M is not progressing as well as we had all hoped and so we have some tough decisions ahead of us, but we'll make it through.  My dear friend Dan continues to deteriorate from his brain tumor, but he is not in pain and is surrounded by his family over in the UK so I know he is comforted even if it can't be by me.

And Mr. Tide and I took some much needed time and went to the beach for a few days to renew our souls and to unwind.  There really is no better medicine than salt water!!

Our son had an easy move in to his college, only to move out a few days later.  When faced with people making bad choices that impacted him, and with a university that couldn't guarantee it would be any different if he changed rooms, he made a very tough decision and one we are SO proud of him for making!  He stood strong and even the Dean couldn't disagree with his choice.

He is sad to have to go elsewhere, but he knows that by keeping his eye on the big prize and what he wants for his future that sometimes doing the right thing isn't always an easy path to follow.  It's a lesson that we can all learn from, that even when one door closes, another one opens.  And even though we might not always realize it at the time, it will be the door we were meant to step through!

Without a computer for over a week I was able to slow down a little and focus on what was really important to me. I spent lots of time with my family and took my camera everywhere to capture the beauty around me, like this sweet Akita named Moto that we met on the beach at St. Mary's City last week.  

I feel so much better than I did when I wrote my last post, thanks to all of you and after taking some time away.  We all need that for ourselves, time to reflect and to move onward and upward.  Thank you again for everything and I hope each of you have a wonderful week!

Sincerely,

Kat :)