Life is a journey is an oft repeated cliché. There is truth in it. What better way to describe the path we each travel from birth to death.
My Bert and I recently celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary. I have been pondering our journey together. There have been many journeys within the journey. All began as unknown territory.
Journeys begin with hello. They end with goodbye. Some flash by like comets others are slow perambulations. Some are sunlight, some are dark night; some give you strength, some make you weak.
Some you want to hold forever; some you can’t wait to let go. Some make you laugh until you cry some only make you cry.
There are journeys that you seek and journeys that are thrust upon you.
Some journeys lead you to people who become Lifeliners, friends forever. Some lead to people who are fleetingly important for just a moment in time.
Journeys are moments, no matter the duration. Some are landmarks of your life that help you find your soul, your strength, your spirit. Journeys are multifaceted. You juggle the segments, living them concurrently. Journeys teach you to multitask.
Journeys are never straight, direct or easy. Yet once you begin you must continue.
Some journeys seem never ending. You stumble, ineffectual, distraught, full of fear, numb with disappointment. You see chasms and dangerous cliffs, mountains that seem too high to scale. There are twists and turns and unexpected obstacles. These are the fragments that seem to be put in your path to frustrate you, only you. Now comes the realization that this is really your journey, only you can walk this particular road, only you can make the decision which path to take.
It is wonderful when you can take control of the journey. You have solutions to problems, answers to questions; you dream the impossible and see it become possible. You start out in uncharted waters diving into unknown territory and surprisingly make a safe, happy landing. Yes, some journeys are wonderful, delightful and satisfying.
Each one has a life journey. How you travel it is up to you. You can accept the help of friends and family with grace. You may show gratitude for the kindness of strangers. You may be lucky to give love and have it returned twofold. In the end your journey will be a reflection of your truth, of you.
More than 50 years ago My Bert and I like so many others have over the years, made a decision to walk our journeys together. What a journey it has been and continues to be. On this challenging leg the decision on how the journey unfolds is mine to make for both of us. I can make us both miserable; bemoan the unfairness of it all or I can embrace the privilege that it is to be a caregiver to the one you love and to whom you are the world.
My Bert and I are still saying hello to love, to life, to joy. We embrace the moments and while they are fleeting for him and lasting for me they are our moments. His journey and mine will commingle as they have for more than 50 years. We will continue to walk in tandem and greet each day with hope that it will be a good day.
The Meander: The day you are born is the day you begin to die. That is inevitable, inescapable and undeniable. As my Bert and I continue to say hello at the dawn of each new day I hope we will both be able to rise to the occasion and be ready to say goodbye at journey’s end. In the meantime we will keep on with the journey. We will live the moments and not look around the bend. Why bother? What is there will come without fail.