Family. Everything Else Can Take a Backseat For Awhile.

I was going to apologize like mad because of slacking on my writer's blog. I was going to explain that my focus had to shift to my family for awhile when school got out and then we went on a summer vacation. I was probably going to complain about how crazy things are and how I have to compete with my kids for my computer now and how if one child isn't talking to me then more than one are at a time and it's been pretty hard for me to zone in on my writing.
I AM going to recommit and tell you that I hope you'll still visit, because my Monday stories are totally going to pick up again and get pretty juicy! I was even going to publish a Monday story today to make up for missing two weeks, but something happened in our neighborhood last night.
A friend, a mom, a beloved primary teacher near me passed away last night very unexpectedly. Our neighborhood is heart-broken.
I don't want to be presumptuous and talk about her too much, even though I admired and loved her.
I want to say that perspective shifts a lot when something like this happens. Life has to go on at it's crazy pace, but today there is going to be a lot of reflection. There will be a lot of hugs, a lot of "I love you"s. A lot of pulling family close and remembering what is much more important than anything else in this world.
I know for sure that the family will be cradled by heaven at this time. I know from experience that they will feel comfort from a world beyond this one and it will get them through.
Today, stop everything and have a conversation with your kids about whatever they like to talk about. Pass on that compliment that you've always thought of your neighbor, but never quite grabbed the moment to say it out loud. Today put aside petty differences. Today set the stress aside and sit next to your husband on the front porch swing.
When my Dad got sick, he started, as the saying goes, "living like he was dying". He said and did everything, and cherished all of the moments. How thankful we are for those times! But I always thought that was quite a bit of pressure on him, and kind of a sad way to think of things. So I say: Live like your living. Really, really live. I say, we don't necessarily need to cling to things with desperation. I think it would be nice if we just stop and allow ourselves to take joy in the good things of life. They're kind of rare, because life's hard. But they're kind of magical too, because they somehow make all of the hard stuff really worth it.