Rejuvenation

All I needed was time to heal.  Yes, I had physical pain from a very bad case

of gout.  And I realized that it was my own fault.  It can be 2:00 in the 

afternoon and it will dawn on me that all I have had to drink is half of a venti

iced green tea.  Equivalent to maybe 12 oz. of liquid!  I can't do that or the

uric acid builds up in my system. Well, blah..blah... blah.... you can surmise

the rest!  Nine days of hobbling around as the pain slowly receded.

But I also was reeling from mental angst.  I was going through a spell of

situations where negativity seemed aimed at me. Try as I might to dodge

the bullets, I was an open target.  Should I fight back?  Tried that before

but somehow they got the memo to wear deflective clothing at all times.

Yes, in their minds,  I'm the one being too sensitive or worse ~ just totally

wrong!!  I'll tell you, my neck was getting sore from turning the other cheek

over and over again.

I was really getting to a point where I was doubting everything.  Am I really

creative or just kind of?  Is my blog good enough for others to enjoy or

am I just banging away on the keyboard to only hear crickets in blogland?

Is any of this worth it as it seems so many others have grabbed at the brass

ring and got it!  WOW!!  Did I needed to shake this off or what?!  I realized 

that I had become a "super sponge" and was absorbing all the negativity

 coming my way.. whether it was physical or personal.  How did I allow this to

 happen??  

 Thankfully, I was sent an angel my way who saw the place where I was at

and encouraged me to stick to my plan of attending an art event in California.

Even though mentally I was hurting, my foot had finally repaired itself.

I packed art supplies and clothes and flew to sunny CA... a place where I

always say my soul belongs.  That should have been a big sign right there!

My destination was an art event called, Spellbound.  Produced by the 

dynamic duo of Shea Fragoso and her mother, Debbie Murray.... two women,

who, through hard work, perseverance, and bucket loads of talent, have

taken the creative world by storm.  Attendees were treated to a luxury

hotel, two days (and one night) of classes taught by top-notch instructors,

and most importantly... most importantly, friends, old and new!

I was thirsty for a loooong dose of friendship.  I needed to drink at 

the fountain of caring, supportive people who got me.. and I them!

And drink, I did.  We helped each other in classes where we were acquiring

new skills.  We shot big, genuine, welcoming smiles in each other's direction.

We listened to each other tell stories of what we had been doing since last

we were together. New friends were added to old and we welcomed them 

with open arms.  I love these women... I love these adventures!

I was now satiated and content.  Returning home, and after I unpacked

my suitcases, I turned to my husband and said, "Thank you!  No.... I don't

mean it in the respect that I need your permission or approval to go on

my adventures.  (We don't have that kind of relationship). I just mean, "thank

you" for understanding that I need to get away sometimes.  I just mean,

"thank you" for appreciating who I am."

The corners of his mouth turned up as he looked at me and smiled.  

"You just always come home happier and I like that!"

As we hugged, I squeezed him just a bit tighter.  Am I blessed or what??!!