Relax Day

The picture is not the family that we had been spending time with this time last year. The picture is Marsha and I with our grandkids, our daughter and our son-in-law at The Melting Pot. Marsha loved family gatherings. Almost nothing made her happier than to be with family and the last couple of days have been no exception. You could just see her spirits lifted even though it was also clear that she was not well. It is an amazing part of the human spirit that people can garner such strength of spirit in moments of such great challenge. I have been regularly talking to my friend Allen Cornell since I found out about his severe crisis with the cancer in many parts of his body. I know that Allen is a man of faith so, like Marsha, I'm not surprised that he is certain about his eternity. What is surprising is the infectious positive attitude he has every time I talk to him. He is open about what is happening to him and clear about the end being near and yet his joy and sense of humor are evident in every moment. He gave up all pain medication so he can have quality time with the people around him. That is what I saw again and again with Marsha in those days. Her family left on the plane this night and you could see some loss of that lifted spirit after. It must take some effort to rise above the circumstances, but it is just something else that people like Marsha do for others at their own expense.