Another Day

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day to one and all. May God's rich blessings fall on each of you today.

This day has always been celebrated with birthday cake in my family. My older brother and my younger son are both leprechauns born on Saint Patrick’s day. Happy birthday Bill. Happy birthday Paul.

It seems as I get older most of of the joy of my life comes from seeing the joy and excitement in the lives of my children and grandchildren. Last night my twenty year old granddaughter and her boyfriend came over to eat dinner with us. It was lovely to spend time with them and hear about the world as seen through their eyes. My oldest granddaughter is in the process of buying her first home. She is so excited and happy. Her excitement spills into my life and makes me smile. I seem to live vicariously through their lives. That is not all bad, but I need to find my own purpose and joy in life. I can't just sit and hope that one of the kids will have time to come by and visit and fill me up with the joys and concerns of their lives. I need to find a purpose of my own for each of the days remaining in my life.

This long recovery from foot surgery has been difficult. One of the hardest things was not being able to much of anything. For a long time I did nothing. I got comfortable doing nothing. I find joy now in each new accomplishment. I can again do most of the usual household chores. Who knew that doing laundry and cooking and cleaning up the kitchen would feel like such an accomplishment. I still can't walk far, but I can walk, and I will walk further. I am working hard at physical therapy and getting stronger. Still there are long periods of empty time that I mostly fill with reading and computer games. I need to find some activities now that make me feel useful to the world around me.

My question is now what? What shall I do with the rest of my life? What can I do that matters?