Sunday, March 29, 2015

Don't Take Spring Break for Granted...Ever.

I'm not sure why, but I've never been excited about spring break.  The concept of leaving for a few days just to get away from the cold seemed like a waste of money.  I have to leave from O'Hare Airport which always makes you second guess your decision to travel.  Do I want to spend 4 hours, at best, in a terminal?


Last week I went to Florida to watch my son play ball with his high school team.  You know you've left the Midwest when you arrive still wearing a hooded parka.  Then you walk outside the airport and you're hit with the smell of sea breezes.   I honestly forgot what it was like to see flowers on shrubs and bare arms.  We were released from our igloos back home.


I had a great time eating key lime pie, walking on the beach and watching a ball game in the sun.  I soaked in every minute.  Hard to imagine why I didn't think this was going to be worth it. 


Our return flight was delayed.  The planes from O'Hare were late due to de-icing.  Funny.  It was fine with me.  I had a few hours to read and catch up on email.  No one was there to tell me how to spend those few hours.  I thought about that.  What a simple pleasure that we all take for granted.  Not being told what to do and when to do it.  Not having to ask permission to use the bathroom or go for a coffee.   No regimen.  No one watching.  So grateful for my freedom. 

Saturday, March 21, 2015

Touching My Son's New Shaven Head

My son left for a baseball tournament in Florida.  This morning I pulled him towards me and rubbed his freshly shaven head.  It felt so good.  Something we take for granted...the sense of touch.  Intimacy.  A hug. Grateful that the moment still lingers this afternoon.







Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Three Years Have Passed While In Prison. THREE YEARS. Where's Your Gratitude?

On Sunday I took my car for the first wash since winter started. You know that's your cue that the worst is over.  Here comes the sun.  You relish that feeling if you live in Chicago.  So much to forward to.  Family vacations, longer days, working in the garden, riding your bike.


On Sunday, Blago looked forward to possibly 9 or more years of the same old same old.  Three years have passed since he stepped through those prison doors.  Three years of banging his head against the wall. 


There's a new television show I'm watching called, "The Last Man on Earth."  It's a comedy starring Will Forte as a normal guy who winds up surviving a virus that wipes off everyone else and he's the last man on earth.  As I watch I can't help but think that his life is no different than Blago's in prison.  In one scene he celebrates his birthday.  A lonely candle shoved in a twinkie.  He's thinking of birthdays past, surrounded by family.  Hugs.  He laments about missing Breakfast Burritos, and "getting mail."  He masturbates...a lot...to compensate for the intense boredom. 


I watched Blago step into prison three years ago and I've tried to live each day with gratitude that I'm not the one sitting in prison.  It doesn't matter how low security it is.  It still means he missed his daughter's high school graduation.  Her first day in college.  The holidays.  Fresh sheets on the bed.  Cool breeze through the open window at night.  A fire on the patio.  I know most folks think it's crazy to be thinking of Blago, but in doing so I've learned that you have to put yourself out there.  You can't enjoy a beautiful day at the beach if you don't force yourself to get off the sofa and drive there.  You can't enjoy a fire on the patio if you don't force yourself to collect the wood and just do it.  You really don't know what you're missing until it's gone.  Watch your dog spin around the kitchen when he knows it's time to go for a walk.  Can you live your life with that kind of joy? 


It's a new year of gratitude.  Not taking small things for granted. Grateful NOT to be Blago. 

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Light at the End of the Day

Those of us who live in the Midwest can all relate to the feeling of a new day when we're driving home after work and it's STILL daylight.  Daylight savings means it's almost over.  It's melting away.  You can actually pull the Christmas lights off the frozen evergreens.  Happy Hour comes earlier.


I'm grateful for the simple joy of looking out and seeing sunshine at 5pm.  My son might actually get to play baseball next week if the snow on the field melts.  Spring is here. Enjoy life on the outside!