What's on my mind this morning?

Love, compassion and concern for others are real sources of happiness. If you have these in abundance, you will not be disturbed even by the most uncomfortable circumstances. If you nurse hatred, however, you will not be happy even in the lap of luxury. Thus, if we really want happiness, we must widen the sphere of love. This is both religious thinking and basic common sense.  -Dalai Lama

The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.   -Psalm 145:8


God knows how to speak to me when I need it most.  Wes and I have always been pretty giving people.  I volunteered hundreds of hours in the hospital throughout high school and college.  Wes volunteered through Demolay.  We volunteered in food drives at Fairchild AFB.  Wes volunteered with Airmen Against Drunk Driving.  I volunteered as a squadron key spouse.  We volunteered with Search and Rescue in Spokane, Washington.  We volunteered with the Brain Injury Association of Maryland.  We now volunteer with our therapy dogs.  Life just wouldn't seem right if we weren't volunteering.  Showing love and compassion to others is just part of who we are.

People have said to me that my works won't get me into Heaven.  I know that.  I feel that if a person truly knows God, then they have a fervent heart and a strong desire to spread love to others.  How could you not?  I am at peace with life.  I love everything about life and God.  It was the long journey of life that got me there, but here I am.

This entry was not supposed to be my philosophy lesson for the day.  It kind of just happened that way.  As I was opening my blog, my daily inspirations came up on my phone, and the quotes above are what they were.  As I was pondering it all, I stepped outside with the dogs to see Canadian Geese fly overhead.  Ever get that feeling that the one you've lost is looking down from Heaven and smiling on you?  That was my sign this morning.  Cool, crisp morning air.  Dew on the grass.  Sun shining through the trees.  I looked up and there was John.  He always knows how to fill my soul with peace and let me know everything is going to be okay.

Wes is still pretty sick.  He woke up with a high fever again this morning.  He is on his way to the doctor as we speak.  He has had a cough as well.  He has not noticed it as much as I have.  Maybe I am more observant of it now because I am pretty worried about him.  He had a bad cough about a month ago and it has not completely subsided. 

I love Wes with all my heart.  He is my soul-mate.  We have known that about each other ever since we were teenagers in college.  If anyone understands me more than I do, it is him.  My life revolves around him and I would gladly give my life for his.  If I had nothing but him in life, if I lost everything I owned and lived on the side of the road in a cardboard box, I would still be the happiest girl in the world with him by my side.  How many people can honestly say that about their spouse?  He is not just my husband.  Husband seems like such a common term.  He is far more than that to me. 

Not to go on and on, but here I am going on and on.  Someone recently questioned why we don't wear wedding rings often.  Wes can't wear his when he works.  When I used to work, I didn't wear my wedding set because I used to take care of very sick patients.  When we work with our dogs, we don't wear them.  When we are outside working, we don't wear them.  That covers about 90% of our lives.  The other 10%, we're lucky if we remember them.  (We really do try.)  Wedding rings are just material things.  They are symbolic of a person's commitment to their spouse.  If you see Wes and I together, you know we don't need wedding rings to show we are committed to each other.  When we are apart, our love for each other is still there.  We are not concerned about symbolic symbols of love, not when others can see it in our hearts.

How could I leave this without writing about dogs?  After a night of being pretty rowdy, playing in the shower, on and off the bed, growling, barking, and yelping, the puppies finally settled down around 1:00 in the morning.  They woke up with us this morning at 5:30 well rested and full of spunk.  They have been running around and playing.  I have been outside with them three times already this morning.  They are now napping.  I'd love to join them, but I am anxious to hear back from Wes.  I know everything is going to be okay.  It's just the route we have to take to get there.