I had to put a brief pause on my blog and newsletter to go out of town after my grandfather passed away last week. (You can scroll down my FB timeline for to see little tribute to Papa)
It’s always amazing that our lives can feel so busy and schedules jam packed, and yet, when something unexpected like this occurs we immediately clear the decks and prioritize.
In this case the priority was to travel to Pittsburgh, help with the many tasks that are involved, and to be with family.
Even though he was blessed to live a long full life (age 99 and still cracking jokes), any loss is a reminder of how precious and fragile life is. It’s a time to for gratitude and for taking stock of our priorities.
First, I have immense gratitude for having grandparents that were such an integral part of my life for so long (remarkably I had all four grandparents living until I was age 38).
I’m also thankful for my immediate family, particularly my mom, brother and hubby, as well as my extended family, my mom’s companion, great aunts, uncles and cousins. I’m never sure if those are second cousins, or first cousins once removed. One of these days someone will clarify this for me.
I’m incredibly grateful for my friends and colleagues for their prayers and support. Especially those who sent plenty of texts to keep me sane and even laughing during the last week – you know who you are!
Finally, the loss of any life reminds us to evaluate how we are living our lives, regardless of age. Are we spending our time on what matters most?
I had a lot of time during the long car ride to reflect and do some planning. I realized as I write this that everything I am sharing in this week’s newsletter reflects my values and what I want to my spend time on: health, helping people find natural solutions, dance, community, and fun.
Starting with tomorrow night where we’ll be combining girl time (time for my friends is very important to me) and sharing some wonderful products (living a healthy lifestyle is also very important to me.
So, that being said….margaritas anyone?