Adventures with Friends (Including Family)

I love doing things with my friends. It makes my day when I can go out and enjoy some time with people who know how to laugh together and poke fun at each other without getting offended. My friends are my lifeline. They keep me from letting depression get the best of me. They force me out of the house when I don't want to go, because they know what's best for me (well, they like to think they do and it's cute so I let them get away with it.)

Every moment in life is special. The time you spend with the people you love doing new things....it's a big deal. Even doing not so new things, like the occassional jog or tennis "match" with my sister, walking with my friends, or just going to grab a bite to eat is something to be treasured. Value what you have when you have it, enjoy what you do when you are doing it, and, above all else, smile. You never know when you'll lose those moments. They are to be treasured!

Yes, I know it sounds all mushy and maudlin when I start out like that, but I have lost so many good times in my life.  I even miss the not so good times, since they were a part of my life and made me value the good times even more. I had friends that I will never be able to just hang out with again, because they are unsure how to respond, or have responded negatively, to the amnesia/fugue situation. I have family that might very well never forgive me for the same reason. Knowing all that has been permanently lost, regardless of what I get back inside my head, makes me love what I have just a little bit more.

I seem to lose more every day, too.  Of course, it could just be that I feel that way because I'm losing things that are bigger and more important than ever and can't do a thing about it. That helpless feeling that hasn't gone away since I woke up in the hospital gets stronger and more difficult to deal with rather than less.  The ripple effect just keeps moving outward. I can't fix it, I can only take a deep breath and pray that I make it through something that will most likely take years to settle down.

My friends keep me going; laughing, smiling, and loving me for me. Treasure your times with your friends. They are the most important times you could ever hope for.
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God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.
Amen.

--Reinhold Niebuhr