Wednesday, August 16, 2006

It Is His Birthday....So Why Do I Get The Best Gift?

I've spoken before about being given gifts that I have in no way, no how earned or maybe even deserved, and I'm here to tell you it has happened yet again!

46 years ago this Friday, a woman I didn't even know was in the process of bringing into the world one of the greatest gifts I would ever receive: The PO. What is even more amazing about the nature of this particular gift, was that even though he was being delivered for me and had been created for me, I had not yet been born myself! Everyday, every single day, I am overwhelmed, shocked, and awed by the amazing wonder and simple beauty of the plan that GOD has for each and everyone of us. To think that even before HE chose to send me to this glorious planet HE had created for us, HE decided to send me a gift to be here to welcome me more than 20 years after my arrival. AND OH WHAT A GIFT HE, MY PO, HAS TURNED OUT TO BE!

For 20+ years, we have been friends; checking in with each other over the years to catch up on our lives and share our triumphs, sorrows, and anything else that happened to fall out of our spirits. For the first time in all that time, we both found ourselves single at the same time this year and decided to get together just because we wanted to see each other and hang out. Who knew the spark would still be there, just as strong as it was when we first met? Since that short visit, he has traveled to see me or I he 5 or 6 times, and each time, things feel even more right than they did the last time. Some might say that we are moving toooooo fast into the unknown. I personally believe that we both realize that we are simply returning home.

Following my release from the hospital, the PO came and spent a week during which I never lifted a finger to do anything for myself. He cooked breakfasts, and made lunches, and prepared dinners, not only for me but for my family as well. He cleaned the kitchen when needed before cooking and cleaned it again afterwards too. If I made a move to get off of whichever sofa or bed I happened to be lying on during that time to get myself some juice or a snack or whatever, the PO would insist on getting it for me reprimanding me for my audacity as he went. Hell, I believe he would have gone to the bathroom for me if he could have (LOL!).

The storms that passed through town the week of the transplant surgery did significant damage to several of the trees in my yard. Without being asked and without any hint of a suggestion that he should from me, the PO took it upon himself to cut up and remove the tree debris from my yard. Keep in mind, that I have a HUGE teen-aged son and come from a large family with many men available to cut up trees if necessary. Unlike so many men, he never suggested Ryan should go out and clean up the yard; my PO took it upon himself never even asking for anyone to assist him, though I did send Ryan out to help when I realized what the PO was up to. I felt like the proverbial "damsel in distress", being rescued by her very own "knight in shining armor". Excuse me if any of you fellow liberated women of the new millenium feel I am setting women back a thousand years, but let me just say, that there is NOTHING sexier than a man who loves you doing back-breaking manual labor on your behalf for no other reason than the fact that he loves you. Even if I do cause the downfall of the movement itself, I'll take it!!!!

On the last night of his visit after we had spent the evening at an Earth, Wind, and Fire concert (that I'll never forget and he knows why ;), the PO came through again. My brother gave us a small scare causing us to rush him to the hospital ER about 11pm where we remained until about 3am when they informed us that they would be keeping my brother overnight. When my brother phoned two and a half hours after we had gone to bed to say he needed to be picked-up, my PO got up and dressed and went to pick him up. Though I had told the PO that he should stay home and get some sleep since he was leaving the next day he insisted on coming with us saying that he wouldn't have my brother thinking he didn't care about what was happening to him. And even though we had just gone to bed less than 3 hours before, he insisted on driving to pick my brother up even though there were other people available besides myself who could have done it. Oh my..... Could it really be that finally Ms. Just Write Now might actually be with someone who can make her feel Just Right Now?

The time that the PO spent with me following my surgery was probably the most trying time period I've experienced in as long as I can remember. If you ask me, he has experienced me at my worst as far as I am concerned. Typically the "leader, organizer, ring-leader, mastermind" in any situation, I was a basic wreck. Instead of being put off or run off by the me that was so far from the me he usually visited, my PO stepped up and became the rock I needed to get through my storms. THAT, I will never, ever forget. THAT for me was the best gift I could have received as I've always said that the one and only thing I ever wanted was to have someone who even if he could not fix my problems, would be willing to stand and hold my hand while I faced my problems. In the PO, I seem to have been blessed enough to find both!

So, to his mother who I have since met, I say "Thank You!". To all those who nurtured him along the way and turned him into the nurturing man I am privileged to love, I say "Thank You!". Even to the women who he loved before me; those who filtered through the crap of his youth and then gave him up just in time to be just right for me, I say "Thank You!". But most of all, to GOD, I say "Thank YOU! Thank YOU for loving me so much that you created my PO for me to love!".

To my PO, I say "For 20 years I have loved you, and now I have been granted the profound blessing and honor of having fallen in love with you as well. You have been my friend for almost as long as I can remember, and now you are my love. You have proven your comittment to me and my family in more ways than I can count, and and thus we all love you and you are a part of us. You make me feel like the African Queens from which I am descended every single day. In my eyes, you are the man who is not perfect, just perfect for me that I spoke of in "this post" , months before you and I reconnected. To put it simply:

YOU ARE A GIFT AND YOU BRING ME JOY!
How I hope I do the same for you.
Happy Birthday Baby, I have planned many surprises for this day and I hope you enjoy each and every one of them because you are a KING and deserve to be treated as such!
I LOVE YOU ALWAYS, Sharon
PS: Max Loves You Too!



Friday, August 11, 2006

Profile Pic


Friday, August 04, 2006

She's ALIVE!!!!

Hey Blog Fam,

Its yours truly, Ms. Just Right/Write Now! back to let you know that I have survived and at least from what I can see, all is right with the world!

I'm sorry for the delay in updating you all on my status, but the universe conspired to make posting a difficult proposition for a sista. First things first.....

The Surgery:
All went well! My brother and I both came through with flying colors and are getting back on our feet. It is absolutely true what they say about the procedure being more difficult on the donor than the recipient as my brother looks like he could run a marathon and I'm still creeping around dreading physical contact with anything. Following the surgery, I ran a fever for a night or two and also had a temporary failure of my right lung to reinflate. I know, some of you are probably saying "she is so full of hot air, that is probably a good thing." Not to worry friends of mine, the lung is fully reinflated at this point and the Microphone Queen is back in full effect as those of you who stick around will soon see ;)

THE STORM:
As many of you probably already know, St. Louis was hit by severe storms the week of our surgeries which resulted in a wide-spread power outage. If I've said it once I've said it a thousand times, yours truly doesn't have bad luck and she doesn't have good luck, just EXTRAORDINARY LUCK!! My house just so happened to be in the area hardest hit by the first two rounds of storms and as extraordinary luck would have it, my brother and I were released from the hospital just in time to enjoy 4 fun-filled days at my powerless ranch! Add to the joy of that situation the fact that my mother fell while leaving my house on the way to visit me in the hospital and broke her wrist in 2 places while my 17 year old cousin [while driving cross town to get perishable food unavailable in our area due to the blackout] was simultaneously involved in a serious car accident resulting in several of her upper teeth being broken/knocked out in addition to her arm being broken. I'm sure you get that this was not a fun time for my family. In the midst of this much confusion, it would be very easy to forget to be thankful for the blessings that had been bestowed upon my family that week; however, we all recognized the DEVIL at work and made special efforts to Praise GOD and THANK HIM for bringing ALL OF US through the trials of that week. We made it through everything that came our way including the apocolyptic conditions caused by the blackout [a topic about which I will blog later when I can upload pics], and found that we were stronger, closer, and more spiritually aware for the experience.

THE KID:
Ryan has really stepped up and helped his Mom and Uncle Dee during this recuperative period. Unbeknownst to both Dee and I until the moment of discharge, we have been forbidden to drive for a full month regardless of how good we may feel before that time comes. Thankfully, my gift of a car to my son and our joint dedication to securing his driver's license prior to the surgeries was a good move as he is now capable of chauffering both his uncle and myself to and from doctor's appointments as well as doing basic household tasks like grocery shopping. It looks like I've "trained him up right"!

THE MAN:
Things between me and the PO are progressing wonderfully, and I couldn't be happier. Following my operation, he arrived in town and along with my best friend Angie [whose dedication to me and my family over the last two weeks requires a post of its own and is worthy of the Congressional Medal of Honor] commenced to making sure that a sista did not lift a finger for any reason. From cooking to cleaning to cutting up the trees that were knocked down on my property due to the storms, my PO proved over and over again that he was "ALL IN" as they say. For me, there are no words to describe the feelings watching him take care of me and my family brought to the surface. Watch out world, I think I may finally be on to something GREAT!

THE COMPUTER:
As you can see, this post has no accompanying pictures which for me is almost sacriligious. At first, due to the power outage there was no electric available to charge my computer. Then, once the power was restored, the cable lines were out an additional week or so. Now, though my family, friends, and home seemed to pretty much survive the storms of the last couple of weeks virtually unscathed, my laptop has not been so lucky. It is unable to maintain or accumulate a charge due to a suspected crack in the motherboard which would cost more to repair than the cost to purchase a new laptop. Thus, I am reluctantly typing this blog post on my company laptop. As I judiciously adhere to a rule of not using company computer equipment for personal projects, this is something with which I am somewhat uncomfortable [I don't need "THE MAN" in my personal life ;)]. However, I don't know how long it will take for me to be able to afford to replace my laptop and not wanting to leave you all hanging indefinitely, I had to make this exception. I assure you, that my procuring a new personal computer is a top priority as I want to begin regular posting and get back to regularly reading my favorite bloggers. Please bear with me through this new challenge, and I promise that very soon, the Ms. Just Write Now you all have shown so much love over all these months will return in all her blogging glory as soon as she can! I'll be checking in as often as I can and hope to see comments left by all of you as you stop through.

Remember....IT IS ALL GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!