2010: three weeks in...

• I can't stop thinking about the earthquake in Haiti, and its aftershocks. I know I need to stop watching CNN 24/7, but I can't. The stories are so compelling: stories of trying to find relatives, of rescuing victims, and attempts to get out of the country. The more I watch, the sadder I get, but like I said, I can't turn the TV off.
• I have a friend whose mother just had a brain tumor removed. It was a tricky surgery; the tumor was wrapped around her optic nerve. Yesterday, the doctors thought things were okay. Today, I receive an E-mail from my friend, saying that the vision in her mom's eye is gone. They don't know if it's permanent.
• I received a letter in the mail from my minister. She sent it to all of the members of our church. It was the announcement that she is leaving at the end of March. She really helped me through a difficult period of my life, and the feelings of loss started to creep in.
• I'm not happy about the results of the Massachusetts senate race. And that's all I'm saying about that.
• Friday night I'm singing at a memorial service. Even though my friend is viewing his sister's death as a blessing (she had numerous health problems during her final years), it doesn't make it any easier.
• I have a friend whose husband totaled his truck the other day. Good news: He escaped with only cuts and bruises. Bad news: They have no health insurance. They have to pay for the emergency room, cat scan, and other fees associated with the accident. They DO, however, have auto insurance.

I'm sorry that my posts have been more or less on the downside lately. I posted in my Facebook status the other day that 2010 is shaping up to be "one of those years." Lately my friends, loved ones, and I have been facing a lot of challenges, good and bad. The first two weeks were difficult for me, both at work and at home (more at work, though), and I was prepared to hide in a tent throughout the three-day weekend.

Yet...why is it that it takes events such as the ones I've listed above for me to gain perspective, and realize that I have a pretty good life as it is? I mean, I have a job, a house, insurance of all kinds, and my health. I can fulfill my basic human needs. Yet the people in Haiti were struggling well before the quake to get those needs taken care of. And far too many Americans don't have health care. (Again, do NOT get me started on the Massachusetts senate race...)

So that's where I am right now...wrestling to find perspective on various things, trying to find answers, and becoming impatient when I can't find them immediately.

Again, sorry for being a downer lately. I promise we'll be back to humorous, lighthearted Bookkitten programming soon.