birthday

good news

| Kelly Barrow @ Faithacre Studio

I wrote a post yesterday sharing “ten things about me”.

I have three things to share today: good news, a correction, and and a confirmation.

They are all wrapped up in one tiny bit of information…

My wonderful husband informed me last night that I will not be turning 60 on my birthday this week. I will be 59 and that proves that I am absolutely not good at math.

In any case, I am celebrating that I will be gaining another whole year of life due to my husband’s attention to detail (and practiced skill of keeping me on track).

Please do not feel the need to point out that I’ve not actually “gained” any time at all and that this is a wholly illogical point of view.

I’m at peace with my delusion.

Life is good.

Blessings on your Sunday!

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Wandering

| Kelly Barrow @ Faithacre Studio

Warning.

This post may wander a bit.  That’s a good thing. Today, I am wandering for the first time in many days.

I have no specific goals for today.  Nothing that has to be done urgently.  Nothing urgent at all really.  (Happy sigh).

My sister saw her doctor on Thursday for the follow-up to her last hospitalization.  His first words, “You really dodged a bullet.”  There are a few minor(ish) things to clear up, but basically he told her to, “Go live your life.”  She’s to increase her activity as she is able and not to worry about the blood clots.  They should resolve in the next 3 to 6 months.  It’s been a scary, hard month.  We don’t know if she’ll get back to where she was health-wise, but time will tell.  Life is good.

Barret the dog has had a relapse of his meningitis and is back on medication.  We caught it very early so his prognosis is good(ish).  I suppose that the recommendation for him is the same as for my sister…go live your life and take each day as a gift.  He’s getting lots of treats.  He’s still weird and dorky.  That is good.

Today is my youngest daughters 13th birthday.  My last teenager. Her school lessons are still challenging, but I think we are starting to get the hang of it all.  I’m hopeless at the math, but I have an answer book!  I start with the answer and work back to figure it all out. I’m not crying as much over the homework.  She’s not crying at all.  Good stuff.

I’ve started a new art card…

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And I’m going back to work on this…

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…the door makes more sense now. https://faithacrestudio.com/2016/08/27/doors/

And someday I probably need to work on this, my studio worktable…

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Honestly, a lot (okay, all) of my house looks like this.  Except for the parts  that are really messy.

Today, I don’t really care.  Everybody and everything that is supposed to be breathing, is. Family and friends are gathering for a birthday celebration.

The food is waiting to be prepared.

We’ll shove the mess to one side and eat off of paper plates.  Nobody will complain.  There won’t be many disagreements (it is close friends and siblings after all).  Will have fun and celebrate.

It’s all good.

 

 

 

 

Fifty-three.

| Kelly Barrow @ Faithacre Studio

photo (46)Today is my birthday.  I am 53 years old.  Surprisingly enough, I’m not bothered by the number of years anymore.

“The great thing about getting older is that you don’t lose all the other ages you’ve been”.  Madeline L’Engle

That quote resonates with me today.  At 53 I do feel a bit wiser and I appreciate the past experiences that formed who I am now.  Some of the small things don’t bother me as much.  I am slower to anger and argument.  I don’t feel the need to convince everyone to think what I think and to be “right”.  I recognize that mean people exist and that is neither my fault or really my problem.  I’m quicker to look for the root of the problem and less likely to react without thinking things through.  I’m still far from perfect, but in looking back I can see that I’ve grown and matured and am a better person than I was.

I don’t mean to sound like I’ve reached perfection.  Far from it!  I have the ability to be as irrationally emotional, short-tempered, sarcastic and vindictive as ever.  I’d like to believe that I’m slower to exhibit those behaviors.  I hope that I am calmer and nicer.  It feels like I am.

“There are two great days in a person’s life – the day we are born and the day we discover why.”  William Barclay

I did a bit of research today and found that nothing really exciting happened in history on September 17th.  Nothing that seemed particularly interesting to me anyway.  So I guess that I’ll be happy enough that I was born…and that in the last year I have learned a lot about why I’m alive…about what makes me feel alive.  It’s tempting to look back and dismiss some of the things I’ve done in the past as boring or mundane.  I spent many years searching for great meaning and yearning for significant accomplishments.

But the moments and minutes and hours of my past combine to write the story that is me.  An insecure child of very human parents, sister, student, friend, wife, mom, depressed and anxious adult, artist, writer, and very human Kelly.  Every day in the past was important.  Today is my birthday.  I look forward to every day of my future…the good, the bad, the boring, the exciting, the everyday, and the extraordinary.  I am thankful to be alive…creating, nurturing, loving, and learning to be loved.

“Today I am me?  That is truer than true?  There is no one alive who is me-er than me!”  Dr. Seuss (with a bit of creative pronoun changing)