A Wrap Up My Life in 2023

It was rough year at the beginning of 2023. I had such hope for the year until our beloved Siberian 16 year old cat had kidney failure. She lived through the holiday of 2022, but on Jan. 4th we made the difficult decision to put her down. We loved her, but I know she loved us more back. She had suffered liver failure and we promised that she wouldn’t live one day in pain. We kept to the promise. I was beyond a hot mess. My husband was also having a milestone birthday on Jan. 8th. Talk about bad timing. I found myself wailing and screaming as I entered the empty house. I looked for her and she wasn’t there. I wrote a poem which was published in our local pet magazine to ease the pain. Since my husband is allergic to cats we had to stick to the Siberian breed. We reached out to the same breeder and low and behold he was still breeding. Just as we were grieving God sent a beautiful new kitten into the world. We named him Sterling Eugene after our father’s middle names ( that is what people without kids do lol.) We had to wait and wait until April 19th to bring him home. So we prepared like a family prepares for a newborn baby :). It was a fun time. Then Sterling came home and our broken hearts were mended. The rest is history. Sterling is already bigger then Angel-Ann when she was full grown. He is perfect cat. Gentle, affectionate, handsome and a fireball at times. He likes time out in his stroller in the backyard ( dad thinks I was nuts for getting him a stroller) which he loves. He especially loves watching the hummingbirds at the feeder we have hanging. For fun his favorite thing is playing with a feather wand in his tunnels. I happen to be the number one playmate. I have to schedule my whole life around him :). It’s just like having a baby, well not quite. We have our routine which we both need. Another event happened out of the blue. Our beloved principal of 13ish years. She was a woman of faith and felt that God told her to “move.” She was married to a remarkable man and her husband got a great job opportunity. The change came out of the blue. It hit hard. She was so much more than a principal to me. When I had issues with my parent’s health she shared her faith. That was exactly what I needed at that moment. She was a Godsend. The day she left was a hard one. If only you could see the tear marks on her grey sweatshirts. They were the tears that so many had cried on her shoulders. She cared about every child, teacher and worker in the school. She took the time to learn names. She could run the school with her eyes closed. So I wrote a little inspirational quote : “ Change is inevitable, Change can be scary, Change can be sad, Change can bring tears and change can bring heartache. The one thing is with change we can miss out on the surprises that God has in store for us.” Our new principal began late in the school year of 2023. Things have definitely changed ,but overall I feel very supported at work. I celebrated 16 years at the same school and in the same school district in Dec. Another exciting thing happened early last summer. The Golden Knights, our beloved hockey team, won the Stanley Cup. The whole town went nuts. The parade was huge. I knew many people who when, but there was no way I was going without knowing where the nearest bathroom was located ( I have a bladder the size of a mustard seed.) I also am not a big fan of crowds. We took a nice trip to the beach with my mom and dad to Port Hueneme. We saw beautiful sunsets. We also visited a dear family friend. I found our Aug 30th that I needed a minor out patient women’s surgery. That is where the anxiety set in. I had to wait until the end of Aug. until Dec. 7th to have the surgery. Beforehand I worried about every detail. That was my first time being put under anesthesia. I worried about every detail. I talked to many women who had it done. It was suggested that the anesthesiologist give me antinausea just incase I got sick. I took the anxiety pills my psychiatrist has prescribed about a week before. I stressed about every detail. Would my mouth get too dry? You can’t drink before. I went to confession with a priest and he gave me a Bible verse to mediate on. Suddenly things didn’t seem as scary anymore. Psalm 91:11 “ For he (the Lord) will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all of your ways. On their hands they will bear you up.” I said the verse over and over and soon it became my mantra. It was finally the day of my procedure. I prepared before hand in every way possible. I took a few days off of work. I took my antianxiety pill at 3 in the morning. I didn’t feel nervous. I was lucky I was the first surgery of the morning. I had no problems with the IV. My amazing doctor came in and said hi to my husband and I. The anesthesiologist came and met me. I asked for antinausea and he said he couldn’t promise anything since the surgery was located in my stomach and lady’s parts. Everything I worried about didn’t happen. The surgery was a success and I don’t have cancer. Praise God!! The holidays came and went. They were very peaceful. We ate a lot of Gary’s excellent food and I put a few pounds on. Sterling loved the holidays and he can’t wait until next year. He is growing like a weed . He is huge and weighs close to 12 lbs. I have felt a calling from the Holy Spirit to become the assistant coordinator for a new ladies' ministry called the Magnificat starting in Las Vegas. It is helping me grow stronger in faith. Visit www.magnificat-minstry.net.I am on the service team and we are busy planning our fist meal. We will be bringing in a priest to speak, have a meal at a local casino, praise and worship music, and a raffle. It will be a good time. My husband is taking a big leap of faith with his job in a few weeks. In all my extra free time I am trying to change my blogs that I have written to a short book . I would like to submit to a publisher. Who knows when that will happen. It will take time. My friends remind me slow and steady and when the time is right and not before. I hope you and yours have an amazing 2024. filled with health, peace and joy.