A Beautiful Gift of Love

My adopted mama did the sweetest thing yesterday. There's a wall plaque that she bought in 1979, and she said she's been keeping it to give to someone but had never found the right person. When she rediscovered it the other day, she instantly knew it was meant for me. It was so sweet it gave me happy tears:

"God took a rainbow from the sky,
a dogwood from the hill,
A hidden valley, fresh and green,
a golden daffodil,
A meadow sleeping in the sun,
a robin's lilting tune,
The scent of lilacs all around,
a new October moon...

God took the ripple from a stream,
some breezes from the air,
The glistening radiance of a star,
the springtime, sweet and fair,
A bed of roses in the rain,
the cooing of a dove,
And when His masterpiece was done
He smiled and called it... LOVE."

--Unknown Author

May everyone experience the masterpiece of Love in their lives today and always!

On Being Alive

So I had quite a shocker today... turns out there's been a rumor of my death floating around somewhere in NC. The way I found out was from a dear friend who just found me and told me he was so glad the rumor wasn't true.

I've always been a firm believer in the do good things and be the best person you can be and those things will come back to you motto. And today, good things came in spades. I didn't know how worried my friend was for me. Ours was a typical story... close friend in high school, I went one direction, he went another and we lost touch. I don't know why this rumor of my untimely death exists. In one way it's a bit disturbing, but in another way, it made me remember that when someone is really your friend, you matter to them no matter how long or how far apart you become.

To hear the sound of relief in my friend's voice... and the bit of disbelief that it was actually me... The experience was profound to say the least... I feel thankful, honored, stunned, happy, and immensely humbled.

I am so thankful for all the love and support and birthday wishes yesterday, but I think I'm most thankful for being able to give the gift of a happy surprise to someone else.

And just so we're all clear... Rumors of my untimely demise are just that. I'm still the spitfire you all know and love and I certainly plan to be around for a long time to come. = )