I remember the saying " I used to cry for anew pair of shoes, until I saw the man with no feet.

Be grateful for waking in the body each day.

Brett Noel

Success Coach

"Creating Millionaires one agent at a time"

www.Brettnoel.com

That is so true. Always remember no matter how hard it gets you always have God.

Brett- No kidding. Thank you.

Anthony - Exactly. I can only hope that my friends can see things to be thankful for amidst all of this, as well.

Mariana, Stay strong my friend. May God's peace and stregth embrace you. I'll be praying for you and your friends.

Mariana:  Your friends are blessed to have  you, and you are blessed to know Who to thank.  I can't address all of your friends problems, but I can tell you that getting a diagnosis of ms is scary.  I was dx'd with it several years ago.  The first six months were the toughest and I had visions of wheelchairs in my head.

There isn't anything you really can do for her but be there, which you seem to be doing very well.  There are many different varieties of ms.  I pray your friend will end up with the easy kind that I have. 

Thank you very much, Bryant. It can be so hard to stay strong, but then I HAVE to be strong, as weakness is NOT an option. Not for me.

I thank God everyday that I am alive, and maybe everything don't go my way, but I would say that I am "Blessed".

Joan - Wow. Thank you very much. That is very reassuring. She WAS diagnosed early, so she is hopeful, as are all of her doctors. My Mom told me about a lady who called MS her friend, as it warned her very early when she was not taking care of her body, giving her the opportunity to correct it before major stuff (cancer, stroke, heart attack ... ) happened.

Kim - No kidding. Life, in and of itself, is a true blessing.

Hi Mariana~ Having your strength as a friend in time of need will surely be a blessing to your friends, as you are such a wonderful strong person..don't ask, I can just tell. I can completely empathize with you as those close me are going through similar life changing circumstances..and not for the better. Lots of tears, lots of prayers, lots of faith in the man above,...and lots of (((((hugs))) from me;) Call me anytime.

Thank you, Laura. You can only do what you can do, right?  I am just surprised at the capacity of what I CAN do as a friend.

Mariana, I have so many activerainers on my prayer list and I will add you and your friends. That is the best I can do, so know my thoughts and prayers are with you. Life is so fragile.

Missy - Thank you very much. Sometimes it takes a lot to really understand how fragile life really is.

Marianna - The best thing you can do, you're doing..just being there speaks volumes.  You will be in my prayers for strength and the grace to be there for your friends. It's at times like this you really know how blessed you are.

Linda- Very blessed. Thank you for your prayers.

Mariana - wow!  I really puts things into perspective, doesn't it?  I am sorry you are going through all that but at the same time grateful that you can be a pillar of strength for your friends.  My prayers will be with your friends and with you as well - please be safe.

Life is good. God Bless

I'll cry with you too, Mariana.  They can turn to you, you can turn to us.  

I have a friend with MS, she does amazingly well.  She was diagnosed 17 years ago and still jogs and plays tennis.  She's amazing.  

Never give up. 

Ines - I AM grateful that I am in a position where I CAN be there, in one way or another, for each of them. They are each such wonderful people and I am thankful to have them in my life. And I am thankful to have friends, like YOU in my life, too. Thank you.

Scott - Life IS good. Perspective.

Sarah- Wow! That is awesome about your friend. So much hope in the world, you know? Giving up is never an option for me, but dang it! Times like these - times when it is hard to hold on - sure builds strength. Thank you.

Butterfly (Mariana)...

When I was your age I used to feel that way. My heart would ache as yours does.

As I aged I realized all I could do was be there when someone near and dear to me needs me.

It's hard to accept the things you can't change. All you can do is do your best to help change what can be changed.

Did that make any sense? :)

As for your blessings .. Keep counting and never stop.

TLW...ROAR!

TLW- Thank you. Yes. You always make sense to me. As I get older I find new ways to become a stronger and better person... and I keep finding more reasons why I AM blessed.

Mariana - You are doing what you should be doing - being available for your friends and family.  Thank you for sharing this, we will pray for you and your friends.

Oh my goodness! Tough news from your friends in such a short time. As someone said earlier, you can be there for your friends and we can be here to help shoulder YOUR pain. Turn your problems over to God and he'll help you get through it.

Like everyone above said, count your blessings and our thoughts are with you and yours. Enjoy Breck, maybe there is a reason you get this chance to stop and enjoy your time.

Dear Mariana, what a horrible, horrible month you have had.  Don't underestimate the power of just "being there".  You are a wonderful friend and I know that your friends appreciate you being there for them.  How lucky they are!  Stay strong and continue focusing on all the good things.

Marianna. I'm sorry you have so much to take in right now and I will pray for your friends and send positive vibes their way. They are blessed to have a true friend like you. The best you can do is be there...always. My thoughts are with you.

Hi Mariana, sometimes the hardest thing to be is the shoulder for a friend to cry on. I know it's easier if there was something you could do to heal a friend's pain, you would find a way to do it, but most often you can't heal someone's pain, just be there for them as their pain eases, slowly and over time. All 3 of your friends need you more now, and that's hard enough, but especially hard since it all happened in a very short time. Remember to take care of yourself too...

Marianna - That is a lot to go through in such a short period of time, but it sounds like you are handling it VERY well. I have not had the pleasure of getting to know you very well (yet), but I can tell from reading your blog posts that you are an extremely intelligent and strong individual. Hang in there.

You have a great bunch of friends here so don't hesitate to lean on us whenever you need to. ;-)

"When my heart was heavy with grief, I went into the house of the Lord"

Marianna lean and depend on God during this time. He will continuously give you what you need. I am praying for you and your friends. They are blessed to have such a caring friend.

Elaine- Thank you. I just found out that they may not need to do a tracheotomy (sp?) on my friend in OR as she seems to be breathing a little bit on her own now.

Dena- Thank you. I am very happy for my Active Friends.

Irina- I hope that my friends can also see the positives ... the NEW NORMAL in their lives.

Pamela - I hope that I can continue to be strong for them and am able to do the right things at the right times for them.

Allison - Yes. I do need to take care of myself also. That is difficult to do anyway - even without all this.

Jennifer - Thank you. I hope that I can handle it better as time goes on.

Michelle - Thank you. I keep praying too.

Mariana,

Life throws us curves sometimes, they are supposed to make us stronger but they just hurt.  Sounds like you need a big hug. 

Laurie- THANK YOU. I love hugs. Even virtual ones.

Wow, Mariana - a post straight from the heart.  I'm sorry for the plight of your friends, and touched by your faith and caring response.

Mariana,

The feeling of helplessness when loved ones are going through traumatic times is very hard to live with, isn't it? In the past year and a half I've been through some very traumatic times with close family members and had to learn to step back, I couldn't 'fix' it, and all I could do was pray/talk to the Great Mystery and have faith and be there for them anytime they needed something or wanted to talk. 
You are doing all you can do and your friends gain strength. love, faith and hope from yours.

Jo 

Hi Mariana - wow, what a month you've had!  No wonder the tears are just flowing freely.  What a way to show that we are so thankful for so much.......  I wish a speedy recovery for your friend in the hospital, and some kind of insurance relief for your friends that need it.  And I wish some healing for your friends going through divorce.

I really wish some soothing time for you - you are such a good friend to people, and when one is that kind of friend, their pains become ours and it does take a toll on us.  Be the friend to them that you are - I know they must be so thankful for your friendship and caring and support.

Rest and soothing times for you....
Ann

I am so sorry to hear that you have had as awful of a month as I have.  I, too, have cried just about every day during the past month, and I've blogged about my family emergency if you want to see why.

This past month put into perspective just how important my family, my health, and those near and dear to me are.  I leaned heavily on the shoulders of so many who carried me; and yet had to be strong for family members to lean on me.  Most importantly, I learned that work is not that important, money is not that important, and there will be other clients and sales to make up for the ones I lost while dealing with my emergency. 

A song that I kept playing on my I-pod that helped me get through was "Wings" by the band LiVE.  I'd plug in and play it over and over again, with the lyrics:   "The weight that lays on your shoulders....Could be the wings that carry you home". 

Things are now looking up for me, and I hope they are for you, too, as you stay strong while your friends look to you for support.

Brian - ...anything I can do. They have to take it day by day and so do I.

Jo- Thank you. I have taken a bit of time to chill out and mull all of this over.

Ann - My friend! Thank you. :)

Jeannie- My prayers will be with you, too.

Yes, I am YOUR friend, as you are MINE!!  And I'm very thankful for that. 

Keep being who you are - you are SO MUCH to so many, and their time of need for what you have to offer is now.  Be with it and with them, and don't forget about YOU.

Hugs to you!!
Ann