How to Stay Young

1. Try everything twice.
On one woman's tombstone she said she wanted this epitaph: "Tried everything twice - Loved it both times!"

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down. (Keep this in mind if you are one of those grouches!)

3. Keep learning: Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever... Never let the brain get idle. 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop.' (And the devil's name is Alzheimer's!)

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath. And if you have a friend who makes you laugh, spend lots and lots oftime with him/her.

6. The tears happen: Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Live while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love: Whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county, to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

11. Forgive now those who made you cry. You might not get a second chance.

12. Remember - that God is with us always. He knows us inside and out and loves us. We can turn to Him in good times and bad.

Remember! Lost time can never be found.
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

***So a friend of mine sent this to me today, and I absolutely love it. It so reminds me of exactly where my heart is.

Forget San Francisco...I left my heart in Georgia. Currently, the biggest pull in my heart is the pull to get back home. I totally understand why God brought me here, and I totally appreciate all that I have learned and come to understand in my time here. I enjoy every moment I have gotten to spend with the two precious children that have so overtaken every breath of my life here. And this, of course, is where the biggest problem lies...

For me to be back home means that these children, that hold whatever part of my heart wasn't left in Georgia, will no longer be in close range. They will no longer be a part of my every day life. I will no longer be able to be a part of their important moments, and I will not get to share in all the ups and downs of their day to day lives. And that, of course, tears me up as much as being so far away from home and everything I've always known and love so very much.

I went home last weekend for my sister's wedding. (She was an absolutely beautiful bride, by the way :) ) And while there, even though it was just for a very short while, I got to taste, once again, everything that I left behind. And it broke my heart. I barely got there before I was turning around to come right back here...blah. I need to stop :)

It's just that sometimes I get to REALLY missing home. This has been one of those weeks. So, I ask that you not feel sorry for me, or think that I'm sitting here in utter devastation, but instead, I ask that you pray that God will show Himself completely and totally present in every single second in the days, weeks, months and years to come. That He will make the path that He has for me well lit so I am able to see it clearly. There are many things that I long for, but I don't want any of them if they aren't what He has marked for me.

On a lighter note, our entire family now has Skype, and we've put it to very good use in the past week. Papa and Nanny had a talking cat in place of their own faces on video for a while, but they finally got it all fixed and taken care of, and now they have a hot pink beret attached to a lovely head of black hair, and beautiful bright silver, multi-colored lens sunglasses head thing that covers up the head of whomever is speaking on the video - Papa was absolutely stunning in his hat and shades! :)

Hope you all had an awesome week, and are looking forward to an even better weekend! :)

Love you all!
~Vanessa