Well, I'm writing to you from my new laptop (thanks Santa), not that I had an old laptop. This is my first one actually. I never thought I could use one, but now I don't leave home without it. I have even ordered a battery charger for the car. You never know when you might have a web casting or blogging emergency, and I wouldn't want to be caught short handed.
I hope all of you are enjoying the holidays. Mine have been hit and miss. Tonight I am going to a party at some lesbian friends' house. They just remodeled and doubled the size of their home. You know those lesbians love to remodel. But these are Lowe's lesbians, not the garden-variety Home Depot ones. Just a cut above.
I am off work until next Wednesday, January 3rd. 11 whole days in a row. It is about the most time I take off all at once each year. Now that I will be retiring in just over 2 years, I will be taking a little more time off. There is a cap on the amount of leave I can accrue, so I don't want to waste it. Maybe another trip to Saugatuck or Chicago this summer? Always fun.
So, how about this political landscape of ours? Bush is conferring on a new strategy in Iraq. The Dems may be taking over both houses (get well soon Senator Johnson). I just hope the Dems don't go for the jugular right away. They have to prove that they are about the business of governance, not revenge. That is what the Repub's were all about, vengeance. Hopefully we can put the needs of the country first, for a change.
I have been wondering a lot lately why I am still here. Had news of another loved one/family member being stricken with terminal cancer. So far I have lost two former sisters-in -law and a few close friends to the clutches of cancer. Every day I pray that each new pain I have is not some subtle symptom of cancer. I have enough fear and trepidation to deal with on a daily basis already.
So why, we may ask, does God allow all this to keep happening? Why does disease strike those we love the most, those who are sweet and kind to everyone on a daily basis? We can go with the "the Lord works in mysterious ways" explanation. That works pretty well. Or how about the, "death is very much a part of life" route. Either one is cold comfort to someone who is in pain. To see the kind of suffering this disease can bring is to know how truly powerless we all are in the vast scheme of things. This body we occupy is a very complex machine that can be laid low in so many ways.
So, what of the power of prayer? It has not worked for me in the past, yet I still continue to use it. I can't think of many other weapon right now. Love, hope and prayer, these are the three biggies that will help us all through this. All having equal power.
I would like to wish you all a better year in 2007. I know we always think it can't be worse, but we all know it often is. So in spite of my dire predictions, let's try and live each moment as if it were our last. Try to savor the family and friends we still have with us. They are the true gifts of this holiday season.
