5 Good Things

Okay - that's not quite truthful. I am going to write about 5 good things - eventually. But the title of the post should honestly be, "Chronic Pain." I, along with about 2% of the population; most of them women, have a condition called fibromyalgia. I might as well get the rest of the whine out now...I also have a couple of discs that are essentially gone, and a lovely, giant hemangioma growing in my spine. I use that BIG word because the word my doctor originally used to inform me (while I was on the cell phone shopping at Costco!) was, "tumor." Yep, right there in Costco, "You have a tumor growing in (not on!) your spine." It was my fault I'm sure, I should have taken the phone call at another time but I was too curious about the tests results. Fortunately, though hemangioma is the scarier word - it's the better word. It's not life threatening for the most part - just sort of grows into my spine and wiggles around, creating little cracks. Makes me think of Tremors (the best rainy day Saturday B movies around), wonder how many cracks my kids stepped on walking to school, and that maybe I have a Goa'uld taking up residence in my spine. But enough of that!

So......I have some days when I surely can't think of many good things. Days, like today when I'd just as well stay in bed until 3 PM - but I won't feel any better at 3 PM either. I don't like taking the pain meds and I don't like whining and not being able to do the things I'd like to do. A new blogging pal commented the other day; she wondered how I find the time to do my little projects. Well the truth is, sometimes those little projects are just about all I can do. I'd rather be doing fun gardening, refinishing furniture and a million and one other things that seem oh so attractive now that I really can't do them.

So, 5 good things, which I first spied at Be present....Be Here is sometimes a real life saver for me. I'm able to change my mind-set, even if I can't change my physical circumstances. So, here goes

1. My sheets this morning felt smooth, cool and soft - what a luxury most of us have to wake up in a bed, a comfy, safe bed at that. Some people don't, you know.
2. I tried that wonderful recipe on Crazy Aunt Purl's blog for a blueberry smoothie. YES! Sure started my day with a smile. Is it amazing how just the taste of something yummy can make you smile all day? Knowing that it's good for me is just icing.
3. My boss invited me to a meeting today which I normally don't attend. She thinks I might have something to add because I'm very much in contact with students. I feel less invisible at the moment than I often do. (though, I'll admit, invisibility has its perks)
4. Yellow is everywhere! There's incredible primrose(es?) outside our school. A student just handed off to me a bagful of her scraps and there's yellow peaking out everywhere. I'm so excited!
5. I am, I think, mastering an outline stitch. My little embroidery piece is coming along quite nicely and that makes me smile.

Okay, and number six is that my inventory shows all safe and accounted for. Another reason to smile. I did not quite finish the second little coin purse last night, or do the embroidery that I intended because, like sometimes happens, the pain and exhaustion just hit full-force and I went to bed way early. I did manage to make my first stop in Whole Foods (or as my new friend says, "Whole Paycheck") and OH MY GOODNESS! what a fabulous place! It was just so beautiful I could have lingered for hours. Good thing that blossoming pain circumvented that plan - I'm sure I'd have bought much more than the vanilla soy protein powder for my morning smoothie.

Back to my students - who should make the 5 good things list.

P.S. I would choose today to discover the spell check, right when I try out words like hemangioma and fibromyalgia - spell check exploded.

5 Good Things

The first good thing is that my morning started with this:

• My Christmas Cactus doesn't grow and get BIG; but he sure makes beautiful blooms and often. The last one was at Christmas (as it should be) and I did not expect more bloom for a year. What a morning treat!
• The mountain wasn't out. I felt a slow, sad sigh erupting( And then, I had this, "well wait a minute!" thought. I KNOW the mountain is there. Yes, I know it. Faith. Even when I can't see, I know. How relaxing, relieving, comforting and affirming was that thought? I'm so grateful! I admit, the mountain is a pretty simple leap of faith; but we start with small things, eh? Perhaps when I have mastered small things, I can dance with bigger things. Faith. My word for the day.
• A lovely student here, a woman in my age group, stopped, noticed my embroidery and shared with me some of her thoughts and demonstrated an easy way to make one of the stitches I will work tonight. Very nice to have that friendly exchange.
• The clouds, as I drove down 45th Street were just dancing in the sky. I wanted to sing! But, at the moment, all I could think of for lyrics was something to do with corn being as high as an elephant's eye; and I didn't think that fitting for Seattle, but I had a good laugh.
• And, as usual, my morning inventory finds all of my loved ones safe and sure...and that's the best of all.

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Hey: I love so many little ideas that I see on others' blogs (I really just wanted to do that plural possessive thing) and so, I'm going to steal them all and post them all in one place.

5 Good Things

• Everyone in my world is alive and well, most even happy this morning. Do you remember putting your hands on the back of sleeping babies to make sure they were still breathing? I no longer do that (well, it's different when it's a grown man!) but I do sort of take inventory each morning and breath a sigh and smile when each are accounted for.
• There's that special hazey light green color of the tree line dons in late spring. Is it not just the most magical color? In a few days, perhaps a week or so, that color will mature into a dark and grown up green. I love the full-blown summer green, but I so treasure that first bit of hazey green.
• I saw the mountain today. I see the mountain nearly every day...but today I really SAW the mountain - so I am grateful for both the mountain and my seeing - sometimes I am blind.
• Delightful polka dotted fabric, cut and ready to be sewn into quick and fun coin purse gifts. With that bright, yellow lining - I keep just looking behind me to spy.
• The certainty and clarity in my daughter's artwork. I'll post some when she gives me permission.
  

Today's To-Do List

• FAFSA!, (well, sort of, my part's done, the kidlet must do her part She did it! A miracle!
• Pick up bird food!
• Work on Dotee dolls I did this too! all sewn up, now the fun part of embellishing
• Sew up purses
• Transfer pattern to apron front Okay, I didn't do this until today, but it's done and now I can embroider, which I love doing!

Not too much of a to do list. All fun stuff - course, I didn't include work to-do....but both to-do lists might just as well be included in 5 good things....

A really good day here. I wish the same for you.