A good friend of mine recently looked at my blog entries and concluded that my life is fodder for the making of some future country western song… you know, the kind where the washer broke, the car got wrecked, the girlfriend left, and the dog died. My friend is a wise man, and I’ve always respected his opinion. Nevertheless it made me think. Things for me changed dramatically at my late wife’s graveside 9 years ago. And what changed is really crucial, the pivotal point: Acceptance.
Bad stuff or Good stuff: It’s all a matter of acceptance. You see, God doesn’t make any mistakes. And, He’s running the show. So, whatever happens, wherever the journey goes, it is exactly where it is supposed to go. What I do with it is all a matter of acceptance. A happening might upset me, or give me a sense of peace. The same happening. It is a matter of my own acceptance.
So, for example: my aging, arthritis, CMT, and inability to get around, be athletic or agile… is that good or bad? I can make it either. I can complain and feel sorry for myself, and tell everyone how bad off I am, perhaps to get attention. Or I can talk about it tongue-in-cheek, or with some sense of acceptance, however hard it is to find… and accept that there must be a plan or reason to the aging process. Acceptance is key.
So with that I’ve chosen to live forward. As an old man I grumble and complain more than I should, but my overall choice is to live forward, not to lay down and die. And to live forward I need some redeeming purpose – some function that gives meaning to my life. My career is very helpful, but it must go beyond that.
As you probably noticed, the header image on this page changed to a cat and a dog snoozing next to each other. That’s Dakota (the Dog) and Fuzz-bucket (the cat). The dog is a 10-week old puppy we adopted last weekend for mother’s day. 
For Mother’s Day, my wife Farima wanted a new puppy. Dakota is a mix. We think she has terrier and beagle in her. But the humane society also said she has some tree-climber in her. I don’t like big dogs. Dakota is a big dog, by any measure. Her and I are trying to find our way. It will take some adjusting and patience. For her, for me. Acceptance. And probably another verse to the country western song.
So what else has changed? Farima graduated May 12. She now has a Bachelor’s degree is Social Science. She is planning to continue with her Masters Degrees. But she is thankful to have the summer off. Farima is a very intelligent, persistent, and ethical person. She set her sights high and stays the course.
You should not risk your health for what someone else says is proven to be efficient in the treatment of prostatitis. online cialis prescription Though, this must be best price on viagra known by the doctors but, it is necessary for the men to have the product tested to see if it truly does increase T levels, I will be all too happy to have it under a doctor’s prescription. These two supplements have been greatly accepted buy viagra 100mg as the great libido enhancer. Stress: Stress is one of the major constituents of bone, is likely to impair the secretion of parathyroid hormone (PTH), resulting in opsteopenia (a medical condition in which the bone density is lower than the toll of cipla viagra generic.
I purchased a new car for myself. My old 2005 VW Jetta was beginning to cost more to maintain than new car payments. I did my homework, checked around, and got myself a Toyota RAV4. Nice car. It is easier to get in and out of being a little bit higher in the air. It has all of the niceties and gizmos. 
I learned that if you have a Costco Membership you can skip some of the hassle of haggling back and forth over the price and packages if you use their auto program. It does require you to set up appointment with a salesman at a specific car dealership that participates in their program (you might have to drive a little further than you closest dealer). But it appears you get your $2,000 – $3,000 off without having to play games. And it seems like the dealership had to pay enough to Costco to be their local dealer pick that the dealer puts one of their more experienced and less pushy salesman on handling the Costco customers. It worked out well.
We also got to see our daughter Rochelle a little more for a couple of weeks while she was between apartments. She was home for Farima’s graduation. And she loves the new puppy. 
She only stayed for two weeks so she’s out to her new place now. She has been going to college and right now she’s working two jobs. She is doing well.
School is almost out for the kids for the summer. So John and Mary are getting jobs lined up to work. Paul will have his activities too. And our routine will change completely for the summer months.
So, as I said when I started this blog entry, it’s about acceptance. I tend to growl and complain with much less effort than to stay happy, positive, and smiling. Then again, acceptance has to do with accepting who I am and being okay inside my skin. Granted, it doesn’t permit laziness. It is certainly easy for me so identify areas where I need improvement… and generally my overall disposition can use an adjustment. Thankfully I have a patient, dependable best friend who helps me to whatever is next.
So let’s see… a country western song… my life… ups and downs. Actually if you think about it, everyone’s life has ups and downs. Life in general isn’t fair. Tragedy strikes at least as often as triumph or victory. If we’re honest and set down the masquerade very few of us have trouble-free lives. I need to mull it all over some more… but I will sign off for now reminding myself that country western music has always been the number one music genre in the United States (no, it isn’t my own favorite genre, but it sells more songs and holds its audience longer and more than the other music available). Perhaps it has something to do with the twang, thump, and the words about life’s troubles. It might be comforting to know that when the song ends there has often been some victory, some triumph, or more likely…. some acceptance!