New Beginnings (And a Card)

Lately I don't know what's going on in my head.  It could be the effects of menopause, or maybe I haven't quite come to terms with the realities of my life.  Either way, I need a fresh start.  I can't run away from my life--and honestly, I don't think that's what I need or want--but something needs to change for my sake and the sake of everyone around me.  It's after midnight, so the only thing I can do tonight (except pray, which I've done and continue to do nonstop) is to find a project I haven't posted and share it with you.  Maybe it will remind me that there's a world outside my own head, and it isn't all bad.

(Image is from Cricut Cartridge A Child's Year)

Maybe this isn't the best project to remind me of the good things in life, or maybe it is the best thing for me right now.  It reminds me to appreciate the ones we love while we still can, because in a flash they can be taken from us.

I made this card a while back for my sister, Teresa, just to let her know I love her and am always thinking of her.  As I've shared with you before, she's been in a persistent vegetative state for over a decade now, but I still miss her constantly.  I remember how as a girl she always had a book in her hand, and when she wasn't reading it she was collecting four-leaf clovers and placing them between the pages.  She was a dreamer, but her dreams were cut short due to complications from a surgical procedure.  I want my memories of her to be a catalyst for me to make the most of my life, whatever it is that God has in store for me.

Life is often difficult.  We can make plans for our own lives (and we should), but ultimately we need to accept God's plan if we are to be happy.  Quite often they aren't the same.  It's impossible to sit here on this planet and understand how the disappointment and grief we feel in the present can be necessary in the big picture.  That's when we rely on a little thing called faith.  And a lot of prayer.