One Day at a Time

The end of the year and the beginning of the new year were filled with a mixture of joy, anger, frustration and hope. These past few months have been a mixed bag of emotions. Between a sick pet, the inauguration of a new president, computer problems and the failing economy, I’ve been on a roller coaster ride.

Upon our return from an enjoyable Christmas with Lisa’s brother and her mother, we found our 16 year old cat, Spike, on death’s doorstep. After two trips to the vet costing hundreds of dollars, we brought Spike home to die. For a solid week, Lisa and I held our ailing lion in our arms, waiting for the end. I “lost it” several times due to lack of sleep and worry. I was a bear to be around. Poor Lisa! Well, somehow, using up eight of his nine lives…Spike pulled through. We just caught him in the trash can tonight, looking for food (he’s such a dog!).

Lisa and I were overjoyed in January as we waited for the inauguration of Barack Obama and the change we had hoped for. We watched the new first family riding and walking to their new home in the White House. We saw former President Bush and his wife lift off to their new private lives in Dallas, Texas. We saw the millions of people who braved the frigid temperatures to see this changing of the guard. To the amazement of everyone, there were no incidents. It went off without a hitch. It was magical. Our new President hit the ground running, wasting no time making changes. My emotions couldn’t have been higher. Then he hit a brick wall and the “honeymoon” was over.

In the midst of all this celebration, my computer decided to crash. It started with a “blue screen of death” once in a while. Then it was every time I signed on. Then it was while I was signed on. One day, it finally said my computer was unable to start and would I like to restore the system. Yes I would, thank you. It worked again…for a while. But soon, I was getting more of those dreaded blue screens and my level of frustration was growing by leaps and bounds. When my video camera on Lisa’s computer stopped working, I was convinced that every electronic device I touched had it in for me. Again, poor Lisa! The woman is a saint. After all my ranting and raving, I contacted a computer repair man who replaced my hard drive and saved my data. The video camera began working again…finally.

Everyday the news of the sinking economy gets worse. Unemployment is at a 26 year high and a million lay offs a month are forecasting worse things to come if something is not done soon. So let the feuding begin! The Congress fiddles while the country burns. Each side is vowing to scuttle the other. Each side is sure that they have the correct fix to the mess we are in now. Tax cuts! Massive spending! Bail outs! Do nothing! Blame! Fault… Gridlock. Is there any wonder that our Congress had a lower rating than our last President? Have they learned nothing?

But in the end, life goes on and the sun will come up tomorrow. Economies crash and they rise again from the ashes. Companies come and companies go. Jobs are lost and jobs are found. We survive these ups and downs by taking it one day at a time. Each day is a new chance to get it right. We can choose the gloom and doom of the latest news, or we can stop, take a deep breath and learn to live in the moment, a moment without fear, a moment without anger and frustration. I’m still learning to breathe. God help me, I am still learning to breathe…

Did I mention that our phoenix, Spike, was caught in the trash looking for food today?

FOOD for THOUGHT...