Saturday 29 March 2008

SMILEY SATURDAY!


Ok well I am very slack and have been meaning to write a number of Smiley Saturday Posts recently.

Smiley Saturday is a Lightening Online idea that is just a fantastic way to really think about and express at least one reason to be thankful, happy, smiley etc each week. Thanks for the inspiration Lightening!!

Now, please forgive me, but I am going to combine several Smiley Saturdays into one post.

My first Smiley Saturday, I was thankful and smiling to attend a prenuptual barbeque, being hosted by my 2nd Cousin for her beautiful Daughter J, who was a bout to get married to her longterm partner (sweethearts since early highschool) A.

Now I was even more thankful because J, 23 or 24 this year (my 3rd cousin??) has been battling malignant melanoma that keeps reoccurring in the same place, and this last operation, they found that it was because it was on both sides of the main muscles in her cheek. Now this girl is absolutely gorgeous, could have been a model and still could, yet instead she chose to be a swimming instructor, pool lifeguard and then pool manager, to save kids from drowning.

So, with the last operation only a few months ago and then radium therapy, she has lost a fair amount of hair, has lost the majority of sensitivity and taste from her tongue and has been suffering the sideeffects, the worst being chronic fatigue.


My next Smiley Saturday was to post that the Beautiful J and SHY but funny A got married on a cliff overlooking the ocean in the small beachside town where her grandparents (my great uncle and great aunt) had a holiday unit and eventually moved too. Even more reason to be thankful was that my great aunt was able to be there and was reasonably lucid (she has dementia, diabetes and severe asthma and has had to move into high dependency care) to see her granddaughter get married. Her grandfather had passed away several years ago, but his spirit would have been there no matter what the cost, he was devoted to his daughter and his grandchildren.

A's mother was there and before the wedding, they performed another ceremony, as A's sister was killed in a semi versus car incident a number of years ago (she was a friend of mine from highschool) and then A's father passed away around 12 months after the loss of his daughter, so they had a remembrance for A's missing sister and father, so that even in death, they too could be there for the wedding. This was a very simple, yet touching way to include them.

Another Smiley Saturday, is that my father is now taking an active part in my life and the life of my children again, we had spent the last four years (which is a huge length of time for a kid that isnt 7 yet) with no more contact than four phone calls. He has now had christmas lunch, a birthday lunch for my Moo (10th bday) and then Easter lunch this past Sunday.

HUGS!!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Woot!

All great Smiley moments to be sure.

:)

hugs

Dollfinn! said...

WOW Bettina you were quick, I am sure I only just posted that a minute or so ago!

Have another saved to draft as I have to go deal with DBF before getting the pics from my camera and editing them to go into the post.

Many Hugs to you too Hun!

Anonymous said...

Some real noice awww smiley moments.

Anonymous said...

Sounds like some bittersweet moments there Erin! But some lovely ways to include and remember. :) Glad to hear you're able to build some kind of contact and relationship with your father. {{{HUGS}}} Thanks for joining in this week. :)

♥.Trish.♥ Drumboys said...

great you could join SS .You had some precious reasons to smile.
I liked the bit about including A's sister and dad in the ceremony.

My Little Drummer boys