Yesterday, Kat alerted the ferret community to my progression into
another age plateau and Helen ([log in to unmask]) and all the
Helping Hands Ferret Rescue Kids wrote:
Renee,
Happy Birthday and May you enjoy many, many more. May you have lots
of family and friends to help you celebrate. May every dream you ever
dreamed come true for you.
God Bless You
Hugs Love and Prayers
Helen
And I reply:
Thanks for the birthday wishes!
As I sit here tonight, it is still my birthday, though not for
much longer. I have enjoyed a day of football, with my pumpkin pie
breakfast, nachos lunch and bowl of cereal dinner. I had my celebratory
bottle (well -- almost a whole bottle) of beer, Sam Adams Old Fezziwig
Ale, with the nachos as USC overran Penn State. You see, I was born
during the 1955 Rose Bowl and for years thought the Rose Bowl parade
was held in my honor! loll I missed it this year and still don't know
when it came on -- football started here at 9:00 am! So, Miss Helen,
it WAS happy! The ferrets are now all settled in and clean and I am
blessed to have them with me -- warm! It did get up to 1 above today!
As usual, the calls started last night as it turned midnight in various
parts of the country. My cell phone died, but I did get to talk to a
lot of my family. Today, it started again -- bright and early.
Although most people do not realize this, I really do not like to talk
on the phone! It gives me a headache and I am convinced that cell
phones cause brain cancer! But, today, it was such a special privilege
to realize that I have such wonderful friends and family. And, not
only the calls, but the emails and e-cards and snail mail cards and
packages.
The thing I most like about my birthday is that I get the entire
calendar year to be a new age. EVERYBODY starts over on my birthday!
2008 was a rough year for many of us. It was also rough on me in some
ways. It was also a very wonderful time for me as it made me realize
how blessed I am and what wonderful friends I have. I have witnessed
and experienced the kindness of strangers. I have also realized just
how much our lives are interconnected.
I want to believe that I have become more compassionate -- someone has
a quote about being kind to all we meet, for everyone is going through
something. Here in Anchorage, I ride the city bus to work. I catch the
7:30 bus and it is dark out. I look at the people who get on and listen
to the banter of the bus driver with the passengers. I am touched by
the words I hear and at peace with the cold. And, I realize that it
is so easy to take other people for granted. It is so easy to be
self-centered and never realize it. There is a whole other world going
on out there and I know that it is a world that touches me, even if I
am unaware I am being touched.
So, as we begin a new calendar, I will take time each day to thank God
for each of you. I know that there are people in our online family who
are hurting -- whether it be physical or mental or emotional. There
are some who can barely make ends meet. There are those who sacrifice
daily to make the world a better place for themselves, or their
families or for their pets or for strangers. There are those who put
aside their pain, their needs and their wants to help those who may
never appreciate them. There are those who risk ridicule and
persecution so that others may be educated or safe. There are those
who give up time with their loved ones to help those who need help --
or who have been careless or stupid. There are those who willingly
give of themselves just so that the rest of us can sleep peacefully.
This year, I will take the time to look at the beauty of this vast
state in which I find myself and thank God that I was born in what
I believe is the greatest country in the world -- and I will share
pictures with you. I will also take the time to thank God that I have
friends in other countries and that those places are also great! I will
be respectful of the opinions of those who may not agree with me and I
will be grateful that they are respectful of mine -- and probably have
realized long ago what I have just learned, but were too gracious to
tell me what an idiot I am!
So, yes, Miss Helen, I was surrounded by loving family and friends
and everything I wish that is worth wishing is coming true! May 2009
be a blessed year for you and all the furkids -- and for each of you
reading this. I am so glad you are a part of my life!
Hugs and a frozen kiss to each of you!
Renee :-)
Happy New Year!
--
Renee Downs
"Eventually we will realize that if we destroy the ecosystem we
destroy ourselves." Jonas Salk
"The most effective way to do it, is to do it." Amelia Earhart
It's amazing how much can be accomplished if nobody cares who gets
the credit!
Ferret Emergency Response, Rescue & Evacuation Team (F.E.R.R.E.T.)
http://www.ferretemergency.org
[Posted in FML 6202]
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