It's all about the weather

"Whoever said sunlight brings forth happiness has never danced in the rain" Author unknown

There are days where I wish I could be a 6 or 8 year old boy. My 2 sons tonight were laughing hysterically. You know that kind of laugh where you just can't get control of yourself- the belly is rolling, your voice is hissing, your eyes are watering. And, from the simplest things...mostly body noises...or even saying the word fart or burp...and then if you add words together even if they don't make sense- "fartheadblob". And even serious stuff can suddenly become humorous. Tonight we were driving in the truck home from my work day and one of the boys asked how babies were made- they have been challenging me with questions like this more recently- so I went with the "well, your dad gave me something to make the baby." "Did you decide to make a baby?" "Where does it go?" They were satisfied with me simply answering the questions, "Yes, we decide to make the baby" (actually that is another story but I really thank God for deciding to make my baby) and "it goes in my belly". So end of story... quickly the laughing started because they want 4 other siblings...no, 8 to make a basketball team than dad and I could be the coaches...no, why not a total of 22 so we could have football teams against one another...and now the house has 22 rooms, 22 ATVs, 22 microwaves, and lots of junk food because grown ups like healthy food and kids like junk food. Lots of laughs and great, fun imaginations. They end their night with teeth brushing- even with brushing their teeth they are giggling. And finally as they lay down to bed, we pray...as the prayer gets longer, small giggles emerge until the control can be held no longer. And what surprises me, is with some nice deep breaths, they fall fast asleep with smiles on their faces.

"Whoever said sunshine brings forth happiness has never danced in the rain"- author unknown

I know not every day can be that joyous. And sometimes in life, we think life has to be that obviously full of laughter to be good. My motto in life has always been "it's all about balance"...we are not only human but being.

With my dad's cancer diagnosis, I have noticed this as well. It has now been confirmed as Stage IV Lung cancer (nonsmoker- hate that people ask that as their first question) already metastasized to his brain. He will be getting some "palliative" radiation and chemotherapy. His life expectancy is for as long as his body is willing to continue to fight this. Right now, you would not know this by looking at Russ. His "performance status" (fancy name for how he is functioning) is awesome- he really hasn't missed a beat besides a cough and a little headache. In spite of all the chaos this past week and the weeks/months to come, our family as well as Russ have made so many new discoveries. We have done more talking than I think we have in a life time. I've learned more things about Russ, who he is, what his life has been like, and what legacy he wishes to leave behind. He worries he may be "saying too much" but I hope the words keep coming and I tell him this. He loves email- luep@msn.com send him best wishes! When asked on a recent survey how he would describe himself he said "outgoing" and "positive". I agree. Such a strong and proud man.

"Whoever said sunshine brings forth happiness has never danced in the rain"- author unknown

I discovered it is ok to be sad, feel guilty, have anger but not to become overwhelmed with it for I might miss out on opportunities of "dancing in the rain". And as I sit here and reminisce, I can recall hearing my dad say "good morning sunshine" each day I stumbled out to the kitchen for breakfast(yes, if you were a teenage girl, you would have groaned at it too)but now I know...he is my sunshine too.

Thank you Froedtert Hospital for displaying that beautiful quote for me to think about.
Love,
Paula