Friday, July 16, 2010

It's Life....... Asi es la vida

As I went for my morning run along the seashore I made a conscious effort to notice my surroundings. You see, most days I only have the finish line in mind and fail to see the beauty around me. But today I heard the waves crashing against the rocks, saw the seagulls flying high above and I was grateful, for what I have. You see this week has been an emotionally difficult time for me and hubby as well. He has been quite patient with my mood swings. I will rewind to Monday when I was feeling on top of the world. Upon returning from running I prepared breakfast then took Beli to the beach, just the two of us. It was time to bond. Hubby was going to hang out the rest of the afternoon with his brother following their P90x workout. I thought to myself, "I'm so happy we are each spending time with our loved ones."

On Tuesday, the frog made its appearance again, this time to help us with potty training.

For a couple of hours every day this week we worked on getting Beli used to the idea of not wearing diapers. We tried all the tricks available, the bribery (involves gummy bears), stickers, even Dora underpants. She seemed to understand yet refused to sit down to pee-pee. It's a new concept to grasp and we'll have to continue trying, in the meantime:Potty training 1o1: Beli 0: Frog 1).
On Wednesday I joined my friend G for an early walk around Marjan Hill. I was very lucky I brought my camera along because the plant on the left initially caught my attention but as I got closer to the street I saw a breathtaking view of the beach, with the island Ciovo in the background. Thoughtful Thursday: Beli awaiting the arrival of our friends for our Mexican night. We prepared shrimp fajitas, Mexican rice, refried beans and I attempted and barely succeeded in making flour tortillas.



The recipe seemed easy enough, just a few ingredients but I truly believe there's an art to making them perfectly round and chewy. Growing up I never really paid attention nor wanted to learn how to make tortillas. Now I regret it. I spent several hours looking for recipes on YouTube. Afterwards I wanted to call home and ask my Mom why they turned out so crispy but I didn't think she would appreciate the call at 4 in the morning. But my friends were happy eating my crispy tortillas, they said "to be the first time Elisa, you did quite well, maybe next time add the pig lard?" ( I had explained to them that I used vegetarian lard because the recipe either called for vegetable oil or lard). I also emailed my sister and she said maybe I used too much baking soda. I tell you, it's an art I have yet to master.

So you see, I was having a good week, feeling content. But on Wednesday, I was reading a post from my blog list and I learned about a fellow blogger who was in a fatal car accident. I didn't know her personally, only via comments she left on my blog. The news brought sadness because she left behind a loving husband and two precious children. Then several minutes later I received more tragic news, this time from my cousin in Iowa. His wife's 6-year old niece was diagnosed with cancer/brain tumor. Doctors said it's too risky to do further tests and there's nothing that can be done. Only six years old. It's heartbreaking. It's difficult to be in the present and not to think of yesterday or tomorrow. I reached out via email to my friends and family. My friend Nando was inspired to write a story. I invite you to click here to read it.


I kept thinking of these two families: one whose children were left without a mother, and the other family about to lose a child. I can't control the emotional roller coaster I'm in. I'm very thankful and fortunate to have a loving husband who is patient and encourages me to meet with my friends, to continue jogging. Because to be honest, all I want to do right now is cry. But I don't. For Beli's sake. What I did was put the computer away, I couldn't write. I stared at Beli, wanting to remember every single detail of her beautiful face. I also like hearing her giggle. Today she made me laugh. We were sitting on the bed with all her toys around us and I was drinking my coffee when she said, "How does Mami go? urrrrp, urrp." She was referring to my slurping sound as I drank my coffee. I looked at her and I took another gulp, this time exaggerating the slurping sound, she smiled. I had to laugh. And I did!





Hug your loved ones, Life is too fragile.

29 comments:

  1. Oh,yes,dear Elisa, the life is fragile...But you have a wonderful life with a wonderful husband and a wonderful daughter in a wonderful place!
    Enjoy every little moments with them and your friends. I'm sorry for your bad news!
    Keep the worries away, please!
    My best thoughts and hugs!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Estoy pensando en ti. Un abrazo de Madrid.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousJuly 16, 2010

    LOVE THIS!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Mihaela Thank you for your words of encouragement. I do have to remember to stay in the present. Because that's what it is after all: a 'present' a 'gift'.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Kelly, gracias, te extrano. Me da gusto saber que todo va bien en tu nueva Ciudad. Mire tus fotos y me encantaron. Tambien yo te mando un fuerte abrazo.

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousJuly 16, 2010

    I like your sensibility and warm heart. Have o good life, ok?
    Alina

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousJuly 16, 2010

    Life is all about ups and downs, and you explained it, and illustrated it so well in your post. Keep going and be strong :-) Love from Ireland

    ReplyDelete
  8. thank you for visiting me! you have a beautiful blog. and how yummy do those tortillas look. you did a great job.

    love to the family who lost their love one. i have cried so hard for them. i ask God to watch over her family.

    : )
    xo

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh your life is so charming and fun! I just love reading your blog. That last picture is adorable!


    xo Marcie

    ReplyDelete
  10. The picture is beautiful of the coast--gosh I am so jealous of Croatia! I will keep that family in my prayers as well--i can't begin to imagine what they are going through. Your daughter is absolutely precious!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Yes, life is too fragile and too short...especially times like this, you realize how you have to appreciate all that you have.

    ...more reasons to stay strong and positive. Enjoy everything, every moment.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Oh Elisa, I'm so sorry. That is so sad about your blogger friend. It is quite amazing how connected we are to each other. After all, we probably know more about each other than we do about many of our "real life" friends and family. I'm very sorry for your loss.

    Also, please pass these links on to your cousin. This is a book with an alternative treatment option for cancer patients. It was passed on to my husband when he was battling cancer himself. We never needed to seek an alternative, but if we had, we would have pursued this. My mother has a cousin who was diagnosed with a brain tumor, underwent treatments and then was given 3 months to live and told there was nothing else to do. He started the program described in this book. 3 months later, his tumor had shrank. 3 months after that, it was gone. That was going on 10 years ago, and he is still cancer free. If your cousin wants to talk with him, he's always more than willing to share his story, and I'm sure we could arrange that.

    http://www.whale.to/m/binzel2.html

    http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=alive+and+well+binzel&tag=googhydr-20&index=stripbooks&hvadid=1421060667&ref=pd_sl_82yf4ut4dg_b

    I hope you have a great weekend with your beautiful family. Oh, and yes, enjoy that ocean breeze and gorgeous view while on your runs. My view is not nearly as spectacular! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  13. oh! and now you made me cry. I also went into a sad vibe after learning about Marija. I just couldn't stop thinking about her kids... to me it's just so hard to not stress about the daily happenings that are always trying to bring me down. but then I hear about tragedies like these and everything I worried about the whole week makes no sense anymore.
    I am sorry for your cousin. kisses to beli.

    ReplyDelete
  14. What an exciting life you & your family lead in a beautiful location. My mother's family all know how to make delicious Ukranian recipes. I'm too lazy to make any of that stuff myself. It tastes great but is way too labour intensive for me.

    I'm so sorry to hear about the losses your friends are experiencing right now. It's amazing how my relationships have grown with my blogger friends. Truly an amazing group of people. You're clearly a caring individual with a big heart to feel these things so deeply.

    Thank you for stopping by my place and leaving such a lovely note. Please visit again any time.

    Blessings,
    Carolynn

    ReplyDelete
  15. It's always great to stop and smell the buttered shrimp, every once in a while! (I'm hugging away!)

    ReplyDelete
  16. I am so sorry about your friends, Elisa. Thinking and praying for their families as I am certain that they are in such pain.

    P.S. That food looks mouth watering delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Alina, thank you for stopping by and leaving words of encouragement. makes the heartache, a little lighter.

    ReplyDelete
  18. @from Ireland, Hvala moja prijatelica!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Christina, I'm glad I found your blog via Lala Ema. You are a beautiful person,and have amazing friends.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Marcie,thank you and yes, Beli is my source of strength.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Lauren thank you for your prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Karen, sometimes I tend to overlook what's in front of me, really want to change that and appreciate the small things,big things, Embrace it all.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Jen, the blogsphere is quite amazing. I feel a certain bond with all my blogger friends. i think because their blogs are like an open book, you get to read about their daily struggles and you make that connection. I wish I could hug the parents of the blogger. They live here in my hometown (as I learned from one of her comments she left behind.)

    I'm really happy that Jon is a survivor. Thank you so much for the link about the doctor, I clicked over to the website and it brings me hope to read this line, "Be prepared for a deep breath of fresh air". I will pass it along to my cousin. I want to read it along with them as well.

    hugs my friend.

    Ps. I will also share the story of your Mom's cousin.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Thais, people come into our lives and touch us and inspire us to be better people. You are one of them my friend. Just wanted you to know that. But I will be stopping over at your place and tell you 'in person'. Kisses to your sweet Olivia.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Carolynn, your Mom's family is from Ukraine? how interesting, I have a friend from Ukraine, and she manages to understand more Croatian than most of our classmates, (I think there is a similarity with the languages). My mother-in-law also prepares fabulous meals but they require so much time to prepare.

    You are blessed to have a wonderful circle of friends. I will be visiting more often as I read about your adventures in Canada.

    ReplyDelete
  26. I'm glad you're looking into it! Just remember, there is always hope. I believe in miracles, and I have seen them happen many times.
    I will be praying for your cousin's niece and you and your family.

    ReplyDelete
  27. This is all so true, and your post is just so beautiful. Prayers for your little cousin.
    xx

    ReplyDelete
  28. so very true indeed, sending you many warm thoughts, prayers and kind words to help you and your family through this time. I will be thinking of you.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Nando, so when are you visiting? You know you have an open invitation!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for your comments!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...