Just a delightfully perfect day

I try to get together with my mentor/friend, Mim Book, as often as possible. It usually is every 2-3 months. We typically each drive half-way and meet at a restaurant. Today I told her I would drive to her home, since I have more time these days with sabbatical. She lives about 1 1/2 hours away. I arrived at her home around 10:15am and we had a wonderful visit until 12:45pm. We laughed, talked, shared deeply, and encouraged each other. Mim has been such a wonderful support and inspiration in my life. As I was with her today, I wondered if I can be such a role model for younger women in the way that Mim is for me. How do we create those relationships or do they just happen?

After thoroughly enjoying my time with Mim, I went shopping at Macy's and got some fantastic deals (clearance racks rock ... plus coupons ... and gift cards!), then got my favorites at Trader Joe's (multigrain pita chips and multigrain pancake mix), and then met my good friend, Stevie Kriss, at California Pizza Kitchen. I've NEVER eaten there before! We had a great time and after our late lunch, went to IKEA. I wisely went on the IKEA website earlier this week and made a list of what I wanted. I was so proud of myself -- I spent less that $52 at IKEA!! Plus, shopping with Stevie was fun too.

I drove home to Lancaster and as I drove home realized what an absolutely fantastic day I had. Sure, some of it had to do with shopping at my favorite stores (I won't deny that), but most of it had to do with spending time with really good friends -- the kind that know you so well, you don't have to explain things ... and you can just laugh and laugh together about stupid things. And yet, they push you on things that you yourself are sometimes scared to consider. And most of all, they love you for exactly who you are. If that doesn't bring joy to our lives ... well, then, nothing else will! Today I give thanks for the deep joy of friendships.

A day of errands

Today I was a bit lonely. I was proud of myself for getting up at a good hour and going for a robust 2 mile walk. Today was a day of errand running -- getting the brakes checked at Midas (which were in good shape, thank goodness!), Target, Wal-Mart, grocery store, ATM, etc. It felt good to get a lot crossed off my to do list, but I also find that my challenge is when I do such errands, I spend money. I'm not necessarily saying I spend tons of money -- and it's all stuff that is acceptable and somewhat necessary (today it was toilet paper, vitamins, red yeast rice capsules, a lamp for my living room, pencil case, glue, cleaning supplies, Turkey Hill iced tea, 2 t-shirts) ... but when I'm not busy with work, I can find myself spending money. I have wondered how I would feel if I were in a marriage & didn't work outside of the home, but still spent money ... I'm feeling that a bit these days, even though I'm still making money. So this evening, I went to work on my back stairway -- my paint stripping project keeps me busy (and slightly frustrated) but I like seeing the progress, even if I'm not sure it will turn out exactly how I hope.

Sabbatical thoughts

My congregation is so generous ... after 4 years of ministry, I have been granted a 3 month sabbatical. I have just completed the first 2 weeks and have learned a number of things already:

1. Waking up on Sunday mornings is totally different as a pastor than a regular church attender.
2. Saturdays are also totally different as a pastor than a regular church attender (and this goes for those weeks that I'm not preaching too.)
3. I was surprised that I missed my own church service this Sunday morning ... even though I was looking forward to experiencing some new worship settings during sabbatical.
4. It is a real gift to be able to be away from home for 10 days and then look forward to coming home WITHOUT having to return to work immediately.
5. I'm not sure I could be happy without having a career outside of the home (yet I sure do enjoy having time to do projects around the house, meet friends for lunch, and hanging out with my nieces/nephews and friends.)
6. It's not necessarily any easier to force myself to exercise every day just because I'm not working.

Two weeks of sabbatical down ... 10 to go ... not a bad feeling!

What a week!

It has been quite a week ... well, actually quite a past 2 weeks! My dear 100 year old grandma died on July 4 (while I was on vacation in South Carolina) and the funeral was July 8. I shared the eulogy at the funeral, so my energy was consumed in that. I was happy and honored to do that, but by July 9, I was exhausted. I had a regular appointment with my family doctor. I told her, on the side, that I had a cough that wouldn't go away -- I had it for 7 weeks. She decided to order a chest x-ray. The chest x-ray showed a spot on my lung which led to a CT scan the next day. The lung proved fine, but 2 spots on my liver were found! How bizarre. So, that same afternoon, I had an MRI. The liver spots were NOT what we had hoped ... in fact, the doctor's report of the MRI suggested malignancy. It was incredibly scary. While I wanted to believe that everything would be fine, I can not describe what it felt like to think I had cancer in my liver. I had a PET scan scheduled for Tuesday morning. The PET scan results came back on Tuesday afternoon and showed NO signs of malignancy! My first response was not one of HUGE joy, but rather of exhaustion. The energy that all of this had zapped from my body had taken its toll. In fact, I even waited 5-10 minutes to let it all sink in and to regain my strength so that I could call my parents and let them know the good news. Surprisingly enough, after a few phone calls and emails, I was very ready to just be alone and rest. Between returning from vacation, my grandma's funeral, and this emotional roller of health concerns, I was ready for just something to be calm and "normal." I have also found a new perspective on life. When the possibility of me having cancer was very real, I was annoyed that I wasn't in the best shape of my life to beat the cancer, should I have it. I promised myself that if I found out I was cancer free, I would lose weight and get healthy again. Here I am -- cancer free ... let's see if I can hold up to my promise!