I Only Want To Imagine
I only want to imagine what my mother is going through because I really hope I never have to understand or live it first hand.
Death. It was a heavy topic over the Christmas break in Mississippi. First, I saw my stepmother for the first time since she was diagnosed with cancer. I’m happy to report that she is reacting to the chemo greatly. The cancer in her liver is no longer detectable and the cancer in her lungs has shrunk greatly. We hope that means that she is on her way to full recovery, but the journey isn’t over for her or my family. We can’t breathe easily until she is in remission. Please, continue to keep her and my family in your prayers. I definitely do not want my father to go through what my mother is currently going through.
Shortly before the holidays, my mother’s boyfriend of 10+ years was killed in a car accident. He was hit by another car at an intersection…a 4-way stop I think. He was in the fault, and he payed dearly. He didn’t die immediately. He had severe damage everywhere, but it was the head damage that kept him from recovering. The impact was so hard that it caused all 4 lobes of his brain to separate. He never woke up after the accident, and they finally pulled the plug about a week before we were to go to Mississippi. I hate that I missed the funeral especially being there for my mother, but I couldn’t take 2 weeks off from work.
My mother and Marty  (her boyfriend) had 2 children together, Presley who is 8 and Carson who is 5. They were dysfunctional by any one’s standards, but they somehow always managed to make it work. You don’t see 10 years without some type of attraction. Though I did like Marty and was deeply saddened to hear he’d been injured, I was mostly sad for my mother and my siblings. I just can’t even come close to imaging what they have gone through. I cried the day my grandmother told me about how they told the children that their father had passed away. Carson is really to young to understand the finality of it all, but someday he’ll understand and have many questions. I just hope he’ll retain some memories of Marty because that boy sure did love his Daddy. Presley is old enough to understand. I’m impressed with how she handled it. She’s extremely bright. She was curious to know if they would be getting a new daddy. It’s a cute question on some levels and just deeply saddening on many more. They’ll both have it tough growing up, but I know they’ll both do just fine.
My mother is doing very well. She has a lot to do, and it’s keeping her busy. Marty has cared for her since they met. She hasn’t worked in years, but she’ll have to now. Even with his insurance money, she will need to provide for these children. They hoping to move from the small town where they lived and Marty was from to somewhere right outside of Jackson, MS and closer to the rest of my family. She’s got lots of support which she’ll need, however, I still feel guilty for being here when I feel like I should be there helping out. Alas, I can’t. I have to have faith in the rest of my family to make sure she has all the support and help that she needs and do my best to help here from here. I’m hoping that maybe this summer her and the kids can come visit us here.
I can’t imagine losing the one you love. I wouldn’t know where to start without Bryan. He’s my everything! And yesterday was our 2 year anniversary. I can’t believe it’s been 2 years! What an amazing 2 years it has been. And we’re are less than 4 months away from saying “I do!” Wow! It’s coming fast.
I do promise to try to do better about writing in this blog. I love blogging, but it seems that with wedding on the brain 24/7 and work, CrossFit, and TKD there isn’t much time for other things. There are other exciting things on the horizon for us, but more on that later. There’s no way I can catch you up to everything that has happened since I last blogged, but I can highlight the good stuff.
The last blog was somewhere toward the beginning of our Holly Jolly Challenge at CrossFit. We didn’t win. 🙁 But we did come in 2nd place! And I’m so proud of my team. Everyone worked so hard for the entire month. It took a lot out of me so I know it wasn’t easy on them either. My favorite part about this challenge was getting to know Paula and Jody. These gals are awesome! And now I feel like I have even more friends at CrossFit. It was great to get to know them past just seeing them in class.
A very important note before we get to pictures/videos. Bryan and I are hosting a garage sale to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters here in Austin. We need your help! We need stuff, volunteers, and tables. Bring your unwanted stuff to our house and let us sale it for you. Anything not sold will be donated to Goodwill. Also, come by and buy some stuff. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure! We could also use some tables as well as some good hands to help us unpack and sell all of this said stuff. If you are interested any of these points please contact me or Bryan. The garage sale will be held this Saturday at 8 AM – 1 PM at our CrossFit gym on Lakeline. If you’d like a FREE and awesome workout come at 9:30 for open gym. I really hope to see you there!
We are also selling Paleo macaroons – 6 for $5! You don’t want to miss out on these awesome and healthy treats! It’s for a great cause. This money will help make matches happen. They can’t do it without help from everyday people just like you. Please, help make a difference in the life of a child, a difference that will last a lifetime.
Recent Pictures:
Ft. Hood memorial WOD pictures – thanks to everyone who donated
New Year’s Day CrossFit picture
Recent Videos: