Wednesday was a VERY long day. I spent more than nine hours at the hospital while my mom had surgery. We’re a very lucky family. None of us has ever broken a bone or been sick enough to go to the hospital, with the exception of when my dad had a heart attack when I was about nine years old. My mom hadn’t been in the hospital since I was born, and while she and I are both very thankful for that, the unfamiliarity made the whole thing that much more nerve racking. My mom is one of the strongest women I know, and I totally admire her. We’re very close, and watching the nurses wheel her off to the operating room Wednesday afternoon was one of the scariest moments of my life.
In case you missed my tweets that night, she came out of surgery sooner than expected, and the doctors feel like it went very well. (The reasons for her being in the hospital are not things that I want to share with the world, and I hope that is something you can all respect and understand). But, like all of the other difficult things I have faced in my life, this one taught me some pretty valuable lessons. I’m so grateful for the relationship that I have with my mom. Although we may not always see eye to eye, we love spending time together, and we’re always there for each other. She is an amazing mother, and I don’t have enough time to list all of the things she’s done for me over the years. We almost never part ways without saying I love you. This experience was yet another reminder of why it’s important to appreciate the people in your life.
The time leading up to surgery, and the day itself, were very difficult for me. I want to say a big, giant THANK YOU to all of the amazing people who helped me through it (you know who you are!). It’s times like these when you learn who truly cares about you. I’m so lucky to have an amazing cousin who spent the entire day with me, and helped me stay calm as we waited for news. (Best distraction: The Hangover) See, it’s easy to make promises and swear you’ll be there for someone. The hard part is following through. A word of advice: Don’t make promises you can’t keep. There were certain people who I didn’t expect to hear from, so I wasn’t surprised when I didn’t. It was the ones who said they’d be there for me, and then weren’t, who really disappointed me.
As this very long week comes to an end, I am exhausted, grateful, appreciative, relieved, and hopeful. I truly believe that life throws us these curve balls for a reason. That’s why I refuse to let them get me down, and instead I look for the silver lining, or at least try to learn something from them. Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get.
Hi there! So happy to see you here again! Haven't gotten your fill of life's chocolates? Subscribe to my RSS feed, and check out the Contact page to see where you can find me around the Web! Thanks for reading!
