Happy New Year!

Today is New Year’s Eve - Time to say goodbye to 2014! As I look back on the year, there were many blessings and lessons learned. I met up with two grammar school classmates whose friendships I now count among my many blessings. Our connection is familiar and I would not be surprised at all if we have traveled lifetimes together. They are my earth angels! I also cherish the lifelong friendships I have maintained over the years and am glad those friends are in my life still. Thankful for my daughter and husband as this journey would not be nearly as exciting or fulfilling without them. This year, I sadly have seen my dad spiral downward struggling with mental illness, addiction, coupled with grief from my mother’s death two years ago and short term memory loss. It is so frustrating to watch someone you love fight this never-ending battle that lives within them. Stressful, stressful, stressful…and no matter what you do it is like watching a train wreck in slow motion. I pray for peace of mind and heart for him, for those he is in contact with and for my sister and our families. It is not an easy road to travel. I often wonder why this is his journey and ours. I can only think that it is what it is and he is here to teach us patience, tolerance and understanding. To love him despite his issues while maintaining a healthy distance and setting boundaries is a daily struggle. I learned a lot about myself this year as well. I am allowing myself to break from old traditions and what I thought I enjoyed and instead permitting myself to experiencing new things. I used to love to read, and while I would probably still enjoy a good story, I am choosing instead to live my own story and to be present in my life instead of reading about someone else’s. After Thanksgiving, I also made a life change choice to give up eating meat and animal fat and concentrate on a plant-based diet. I am currently working on removing dairy products and sugar. I did not realize that by eating meat and processed foods that I thought were healthy that I was causing myself to have major health issues and inflammation. It has only been a little over a month and I feel so much healthier and have lost weight and inches which has been a struggle in my adult years. I plan to continue to educate myself about the food I put in my body and cannot wait to see the results at this time next year! My resolutions for 2015 are fairly simple. I plan to laugh, smile, love and live more! Happy New Year to all! Love, Teresa