Another reminder

what's really important

photo courtesy of Pixabay

The beginning of this month has been busy, with lots going on, including a quick trip to the Bay Area. Easter Sunday arrived with no plans, and we were content to keep it that way. We planned to spend the day in the garden, pruning those plants we didn't get to before the harsh winter.

Saturday evening, I received horrific news about a former high school classmate whose son was killed in a car accident 29 days after his marriage. I got the text while working a busy event at the Rosa-Lucca tasting room, so I pushed the thoughts away to maintain a cheerful attitude for our guests.

My heart ached Sunday morning when I had time to read through the obituary which contained a wedding photo of the happy newlyweds. With two weddings planned later this year in our family (my daughter Amy and Rick's daughter Sammie), I could only imagine their family's devastation.

I headed out to the garden in hopes that putting my feet in the dirt might improve my mood.

I began to rally slightly as I moved through the garden noticing the new spring growth, the patches of color, and the scents returning. But the sadness kept tapping me on the shoulder.

I'm nothing if not a gal about lessons or finding a silver lining. But there's no dressing up a story like this. It's just plain tragic. Instead, I contemplated how important it is to stay mindful and practice gratitude for my life. If I'm honest, it is easy to waste my precious time worrying or feeling upset about relatively unimportant events instead of embracing the wonders of my life and the blessings I have been bestowed.

As I clipped and pruned, I let my tears fall. And then my boy Jordan called. (Side note, I call my kids "my boy" and "my girl." It's a term of endearment that will never change, and not meant in any way to disparage the amazing adults they have become.)

We caught up on what was new but quickly moved to what was on my mind. Jordan could hear the sorrow in my voice. I shared with him the sad news, which resulted in such a wonderful conversation about life, about the human condition of denial when it comes to the fact that we all were born to die, that no one escapes the harsh realities of life, etc.

Leave it to your children to flip the roles and begin schooling you. Supporting his statement with great examples, Jordan said,

Mom, even though life can be so hard, we have so much for which to be grateful for. We, as humans, have it better than any other living species on the planet.

I had to agree; we do. We have our intelligence and our hearts to guide us.

Birdseye view courtesy of Pixabay

Considering life from a bird’s eye view, I finished my day in the garden with these thoughts.

Even understanding the risks involved and the tremendous toll on our hearts when we lose a loved one, I'd still be first in line for a return visit because, as hard as life can be, it's incredibly amazing.

And that was the best I was going to be able to do with the heartbreaking news of an old high school friend.

I'm one in a sea of people praying for the Quilici family.