How Did I Make It This Far?

July...month of my birth. My mother told me, the day of my birth, was one of the hottest days of the year. There was no air-conditioning then and I can imagine the labor bed... wet with her perspiration after the long hours of pain and writhing...temperature near 100 degrees and humidity about the same.

The passing of time....it all seems surreal, like it was yesterday, yet so long ago; my birth, childhood, leaving home, marriage, the birth of each of my six children....motherhood, adjusting to so many new homes (my husband was in the Air Force), reinventing myself over and over again, grandchildren, old age...here I am. How did I make it this far? To tell you the truth, I never thought I would.

There have been many life-passages and even more life-changing experiences within one lifetime. As a teenage wife and mother, I was new at life; everything so fresh and undiscovered. There were so many hopes and dreams to be fulfilled, so many skills to be honed, so many friends yet unknown. At times, life seemed long; the road even longer. But here I am, almost 64 years old (or young). Now the road ahead appears short. Life was short.

I've been thinking, lately, of what my advice would be to someone just starting out, like I was many years ago, so as a list-maker by nature, I've attempted to make note of a few suggestions below.

1. Most important: Develop a strong faith in God. It will carry you through anything.
2. Find your soul-mate.
3. Hug your children everyday....say "I love you" often.
4. Take your education seriously.
5. Find the things you love to do most and do them. Do what you were born to do.
6. Honor your mother and father (give this one some extra thought).
7. Cultivate and value your friends.
8. Relationships are more important than opinions.
9. Don't be afraid of change.
10. And.... DON'T SWEAT OUT THE SMALL STUFF....IT'S ALL SMALL STUFF!!!!!
11. This list may get longer as I get older.