Especially through the winter months, living in the Pacific Northwest tests its residence to find delight every day. That’s because of the rain. If we’re not careful, rain can be dreary, depressing and gloomy. We have to find cheer within our own minds and in the happy people we know and love. We create cozy atmospheres in our homes. We light candles, bring in flowers, build fires and take hot bathes. We rendezvous with happy people, children and animals.
The rain is as relentless as the Mike Bloomberg political ads. Yesterday my
husband Terry asked me what I like about the rain and together we came up with a list of ten positive attributes of the liquid; it keeps our state green, it fills the rivers, it cleans the air, blah, blah, blah. But after a month of wading, dripping, dashing and staying inside the most positive aspect for us is that when the sun has its way with the clouds, we celebrate! We come out and play in droves. Parks fill up, walkers walk, bikers bike, runners run, with a joy that can only come from being cooped up inside for weeks on end.
Today there’s not a cloud in the sky! I took Maggie, our Labradoodle, out to play. She hates the rain and it takes a promise of a treat to get her to go out in it 
to pee. Ally, my niece and Maggie’s previous owner, even provided a raincoat for her when she came to live with us! This morning, Maggie was so impressed with the sunshine; she did a 360 twirl in the air followed by many episodes of rolling in the fresh, green grass. She starts a rolling episode with the standard dog trick, roll over and then she does a side stroke as if she’s in a pool. The roll lasts about 30 seconds and she can easily side stoke herself about five feet through the grass. She ends the roll by standing up and shaking. This morning, her overdose of goofy joy gave me such a much needed lift.
I’m so grateful for this blessed dog! She came to us on October 10 and she’s been a constant companion through my ordeal with my heart. On April 8, I’m having a procedure that can fix the problem. Right now, I’m dependent on drugs that help curb atrial fibrillation but certainly don’t fix it. Having this problem has been enlightening! It’s caused me to relish those times when my heart is beating normally, which it’s doing right now. It’s like having the sun come out after a raging storm! I celebrate by just feeling normal! Normal is such a gift and it makes me think of the 75 years I had a normal heartbeat and didn’t give it one grateful thought! This condition is very common and I understand that some people don’t go in and out of rhythm like I do, but experience it non-stop! I can’t imagine that!
When my heart is beating normally I feel like Cinderella at the ball. But like Cinderella who had the cloud of midnight hanging over her, when my heart skips a beat then jumps into a 120 heart rate, my gown turns to rags, my horses turn to mice and my coach turns into a pumpkin. When my heart is beating normally I'm just adorable and kind, but when I'm in an episode my sweet nature turns me into a fatigued witch.
My prayer is that when this gets fixed (there’s a 70% chance of success) and my heart is back to permanent normalcy, I will never forget to be thankful. As I sit here thinking about that, I doubt I’ll remember. I don’t know when the last time was that I was thankful for my sight, my hearing, my ability to talk, walk, taste, love, sing, and laugh. Appreciation for life itself is an art and my heart is helping me to learn it.
Blessings to you all and find something to delight you!
