Resilence

     A few weeks ago Tony gave the eulogy for his mother, hard as it was for him he gave a beautiful one.  He shared several stories about her, sharing with us her strengths and a funny story or two.   He described his mother as resilient.  I thought this was a perfect description of the woman I had grown to know and love the past 33 years.  Resilience is the ability to work with adversity in such a way that one comes through it unharmed or even better for the experience.  It is the quality of character that allows a person to rebound from misfortune, hardship and traumas.  Resilience is rooted in a tenacity of spirit, a determination to embrace all that makes life worth living ~ even in the face of overwhelming odds.  I sat there and listened as he spoke, my heart was full and my mind equally so.
  I thought about many people including Lee, I had my brother Wayne on my mind.  Wayne also taught us the meaning of the word.  To live in the face of such extreme adversity and to do so with so much character and spirit and grace, is to be resilient.  That was indeed my brother.

     This has been a difficult year, losing Wayne and then Lillian.  I have stopped living in the world of "there is always tomorrow".  I don't know if this comes with age or the reality of just how precious each day is when you lose someone you love so very much.  I suppose both ............
This is a poem Tony also shared during the eulogy;

When things go wrong as they sometimes will
When the road you are trudging seems all up hill
When the funds are low and the debts are high
And you want to smile but you have to sigh
When care is pressing you down a bit
Rest if you must but do not quit
Success is failure turned inside out
the silver tint of clouds of doubt
and you can never tell how close you are
it may be near when it seems so far
So stick to the fight when your hardest hit
It's when things go wrong that you must not quit

Many thought this the perfect poem to share that day and I agree with them.  Words are powerful and actions even more so.  How we walk in our daily lives and the choices we make will and do make
a difference in the lives of those we might not know and certainly in the lives of those we do.  I'm thankful for the time that I have and the opportunities to spend it with the people I love and cherish, my family. 

I pray I will remember to be resilient as I go forward and honor my loved ones both living and those who have passed away.   To use my time wisely every day and remind myself of the gift that it truly is.