Is this how writing will take place in the future? My good friend, …

I haven’t kept my promise. Life has gotten in the way. Travel, caretaker, fundraiser all seemed more important than establishing and sustaining a full fledged writing career—in spite of the promise.

No this isn’t a food blog, but you never know what will move you to write. Margherita Pizza may show up in one of my future plots. You never know. Together with an ice cold bottle of beer, Margherita pizza has to be one of the best tasting pizzas I’ve eaten and I’m a card-carrying, sausage lover. Since then it has become a frozen pizza staple in my freezer. it’s Marinara sauce, flavored with garlic and oregano, the mozzarella, fresh basil, and tomatoes are to die for. Because it lacks animal fat, it’s easier to appreciate the other flavors.

I remember reading and committing the Prayer of Jabez to memory when it first came out a few years ago. I prayed it faithfully everyday because, believe me, I wanted my territory to be enlarged. So, I read the next of author, Bruce Wilkinson’s series, “Beyond Jabez”. There was a part in this best-selling book that I preferred not to touch. That was the phrase that instructed us to ask for “somebody to help”. I was scared of that part.

Circumstances can spin on a dime leaving you the primary caregiver of a parent and putting you in the position of the ultimate role reversal. While your parent is still relatively healthy, you need to discuss things like power of attorney (medical and financial), resuscitation, a living will, bank accounts, and life insurance, as both pertain to a beneficiary. You’ll feel uncomfortable discussing these subjects which center on your parents’ impending death, but in the long run you’ll be glad you did because you’ll have the vital information you are going to need.

Nobody is more aware than me of how important money is and how attractive power can be. In fact, you need a lot of one and a little of the other to get to where I am now—a place where neither matters anymore. Now I am in a place of simple gratitude. What am I grateful for? I am grateful for being clothed in my right mind, though as my sister says, some I thank God for allowing me to sit on my patio and enjoy the cool breeze, ice-water, chirping birds, leisure time, and the slow pace that has become my new reality. I am transformed by gratefulness. No hustle and bustle. No rush-rush. I’m so glad I’ve lived to experience this new phase of my life. I’m grateful!

Want to see some beautiful photographs of my neighbors yards? Forget about a theme or a focus today, this blog ought to be just what it is-a format for me to write about whatever takes my fancy. This morning, I took my camera with me on my regular morning walk (well regular since yesterday when I decided that I was just “too darn big”).