Awake at 4:58 am in Waianae

Why am I awake ? Hmmmm. That is a long and interesting story. It all started Tuesday night. We were getting the house and pets ready for our leaving them in the capable hands of Carina. The short version of this part of the story is that I was holding Patch when she saw Kato and had a hissy (literally) fit. Kato barks and lunges, Patch bites...unfortunately, it was my hand that she bit. And wrist. And arm. She also got Kato in the lip.. That cat has mad super powers! I washed and neosporined myself up, found some antibiotics from Dr. Wells, dds, and went to bell choir practice. My hand oozed and swelled, but all I could think about was getting to Hawaii. So after not sleeping a wink, we got up at 2:30 and left for Burbank. It was more than a little painful and very swollen. Uh oh. I texted Susie from our layover in Seattle and told her I may need to see a dr ...I knew there was Kaiser in Honolulu so I knew I would be taken care of. By the time we landed, I had red streaks going up my arm to my elbow, I was shaking uncontrollably, nauseous, and light headed. I hurt like heck...no, it was cuss worthy pain, I hurt like hell! We were stuck in Honolulu traffic, so my wonderful personal assistant got on his smart phone, found kaiser's number, talked to several different people and was told to turn around and take me to the Kaiser ER. Which Susie managed very well, and even Maxwell was very good natured with his long stint in the car. Of course, he did have grandma sitting in the car next to him...singing and making faces...kaiser was suitably impressed with my injury, and many caring nurse and doctor type people came and went. Took blood. Took x-rays. Put in an IV with antibiotics. Brought me heated towels and numbed my hand for about ten blessed minutes, during which time they opened and irrigated the wounds, THAT was fun...!!! Joe arrived and Susie took Maxwell home. Finally, I was discharged with antibiotics, anti emetics, and pain meds. Stopped at McD's for a Big Mac and our first night of vacation was about over.  Oh, and oxycodone...that is good stuff! Made me want to live again! So today I have an appt with an orthopedic, my swelling is down, red streaks are gone and we go to Hilo to see volcanoes and waterfalls.  But...big sad face...no swimming in the ocean. And I feel better, so I am up and awake early...ready to start the day. In Hawaii!

Notice the good

I had this post written as I lounged in bed this morning, listening to someone laugh outside my window and the crunch and swish of the leaves as someone else walked by, but now I am sitting here drinking my coffee and wanting to turn on the TV...The Amazing Race is waiting.  The movie I saw Saturday, and the radio show I listened to yesterday and the devotional I read a few days ago are swirling around my head and I am not sure if I can pull it together. So...just start.
You know this picture?

Well, the little Vietnamese girl whose clothes were burned off of her by a napalm bomb spent many years being bitter and angry.  She is now in her 50's and lives in Canada and finally realized that she was wasting her life and now looks for the joy in the present instead of living in the despair of the past.  I am definitely paraphrasing what I heard on the radio show (which was about the ethics of spending scientific resources on instruments of war and destruction, nothing about my topic) She has changed her focus...negative to positive.

If you could live every day of your adult life twice, what would you do differently the second time around?  How would you use that "do-over" to live better?  

THAT

is how we should be living the days that we are given.

Not "That inconsiderate person just woke me up early on a holiday morning..." But, "Someone is laughing! Early on a holiday, how wonderful to be awoken by laughter!"

The sunshine on the leaves

not

the shadows under the roots

smiles

not

frowns

 love

not

criticism

As for me, I choose joy.  I choose belief. I choose hope. I choose life.