There is only one success~ to be able to spend your life in your own way.
~Charles Marley
We re-entered our “normal” life late last night after an amazing ten days away in California. The trip, spanning the area outside of Los Angeles for the first half of the trip in hotel luxury, changed scenery to hilly San Francisco and then up farther into the hills to a campsite of rugged beauty and log cabins for a Memorial Day weekend of volunteering for a family camp for families with children who have cancer.
There is so much to say. So much to process. My heart is full. Overflowing actually. Beautiful little faces are still smiling up at me when I close my eyes, bittersweet pain still reaches out and grabs at my heart when I remember the daily challenges these families face. The fear. The bravery. The strength. I felt small in my ability to wipe away the terror. Huge in my ability to love and give little hugs and kisses to babies and three year olds looking up to me for a sign of hope. We all did what we could. Sometimes my *could* was wiping down counters, serving food, washing dishes. One day it was helping on the zip line and cheering on tiny tots and their parents who faced this new fear just as bravely as they tackled cancer. Head on and with passion.
This was not a sad place. It was a valley of hope. A treasure chest of inspirations. It was a festival of dance parties, camp fires, marshmellow roasts, hugs and laughter. It was a waterfall of courage, washing over you, bathing you in new priorities, reminding you of the important battles, releasing you of the small unimportant ones. Sometimes we forget that all we really have to do is just let go.
So many things just don’t matter. You can really choose what is important when you are reminded of what is worth fighting for. Family, life, loved ones. Hope…
Home now to laundry and meetings with the end of the school year and a broken down ice machine and oh by the way…the dogs need a bath. And the new month is here and the bills need to be paid and the grocery list will need to be done and Michael is graduating and they still need to be signed up for swimming and ……..
yes….I’m home. And I do need to do all that, and I do need to answer my e-mails and I do need to re-enter my life. But I don’t want to forget. The lessons of this vacation and the peace of unplugging and the importance of priorities and family and hope and love.
There will be much more to say. So much more. Right now, I have only a question.
If You could live your life the way you wanted it with absolutely NO FEAR OF FAILURE, what would your life look like? What would it take for you to get there?
Dearest Friend,
I am already there. More unfolds each morning and the writing is becoming almost an addiction. Goals set and in motion for both mind, spirit and body.
So glad you have this heartwarming time with the children of noble spirit. It reminds us all that what we have is a moment in time. And each moment follows, sacred,
beatiful and in most all conditions, worthy to be lived to the fullest.
Blessed Be and Welcome Home, dear Wendikins,
Ms. O
Hotel Agatha
The Between and Beyond
Glad you had such an inspirational experience. I remember what it was like working with the Special Olympics so very long ago.
I look forward to hearing more about what you have learned from the opportunity.
Not to make light of the seriousness of these children’s situations, but do you know if they have summer camp for adults with emotional cancer???
Not at the camp I was at. It was only for families who have children with cancer. Some of the camps during the season focus on just the siblings of the cancer patients and they get entire camps all to themselves to deal with what it is like to be a sibling of a cancer child. All of the feelings that go along with that.
But your emotional cancer…and those that also have it..and I am sure there are many…I thik that might be a different- if not just as important camp.
I would check out a woman’s retreat. One I have been looking into is Christine Kane’s workshops. I would link it here but I am answering this late at night. I will link it at a later date or I would google her. She is amazing.
Wendi! You were about a half hour’s drive away from where I live. I am glad you enjoyed California and it sounds like you had an amazing experience working with those families.
Welcome home!
Hi Wendi,
To answer your question, like Mrs. O, I too am there. I’m content with my life and surroundings. Years ago I found the value in family, friends and the art of sharing.
Less is more, and living simply leaves time for that which we love to do, and time to spend with those we love.
It sounds like you had a fabulous time. Capture those memories in your heart forever.
The kids are amazing huh?
In residency before I had kids, I was amazed at the hem-onc ward. Now looking back? I’m stunned!
Such courage. I remember a 16 year young man looking up at me and then just blurting out, “I don’t want to die.” I was startled by how honest he was. It just came out of the blue. I patted his leg and said, ” We’re going to do all we can.” I wish I could go back and give him a hug. I don’t what happened to him.
You’re lucky you got to participate in something so joyous. I know it meant a lot to the participants.
without a little fear of failure the success wouldn’t be so sweet, I suppose the key is to keep the fear in check, allow it to give you a little adrenaline!
Returning home from vacation is usually bittersweet, I can attest to that as I returned only a day or two before you left. I’m glad the whole experience was inspirational for you and left you with that feeling of a full heart! I can’t wait to hear about it!
We must be on the same page with our line of thought … I was just journaling about living in a mindset of definitive purpose in the truth of God…there is no fear. I am learning also not to put my hope in things that perish or die…but to just enjoy them as they impact my life and allow them to pass when our time has ended. Understanding that notion alone makes life so much easier. Smile. Great post.
Wendi, what an amazing experience! I can’t wait to hear even more. I have a paperweight on my desk that asks that same question. It was a gift from Heather Gardner and a daily reminder to continue to trust God by taking those leaps without fear. Am I doing everything I want to do believing I cannot fail. Nope, still human, still growing but enjoying the journey.