Okay, June 18th, I'm ready

Boy, this 62nd year was quite something.   

Summer and early fall saw a lot of energy focused on identifying why things were as they were and then dealing with cancer and a hysterectomy.  

Neither the cancer or the hysterectomy were on my to do list.

Goodbye thoughts of entering a doctoral program, hello thoughts about what do I really want to do with whatever time I have left?  A week, a month, a decade, a couple of decades?  Having cancer makes the finite aspect of life real.  I'm planning to be around for a while, but I was reminded that I am not exclusively in charge of how long that might be.

Being as ill as I was also brought about the kindness of the many friends who cooked food for James and me AND those who helped to organize the deliveries of that same bit of love.  

Fall was spent healing.  Early winter was spent on catching up from healing and doing all the things I'd meant to do before the focus was switched.  

Things were moving back to normal and then the concrete walk provided a moment for me to experience the word trajectory in a first hand way.  The result was the wrist that was somewhat shattered and needed surgery.  

Again I was reminded of the fragility of the human body and the idea that the spirit need not also be fragile.  I was also reminded that love that can be shown in so many ways by friends and family.

I was reminded that the man that I love is willing to do so much for me.  He will help me bathe, help me get out of bed when a small crane would have been handy, feed me the goodies that are a part of a nurturing diet, and not judge me as I binge on TV shows.  Shoot, he will sit with me and get all romantic as we watch the British telenovela - Doc Martin.  

I was glad that I was able to be healthy enough to finally give my lecture at the Huntington Library.  A special thanks to those who saw value in the topic and the generosity to offer me the chance to reschedule.  The night was a dream come true for this history nerd.  

This spring to summer has been a series of re-energized efforts to work on one of two books that I plan to write.  

The second will be a book about the Bandini and Elliott family.  I'll need a bit more time for research and a lot more time for organizing the footnotes.  

The first book I write will be about my Garcia/Villa roots and their life in Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas.  

I have no idea what the format will be.  I'll think on that as I begin my 63rd year.

And I plan to catch as many sky scapes as possible.