Before and After

We look before and after, and pine for what is not;
Our sincerest laughter
With some pain is fraught;
Our sweetest songs are those
that tell of saddest thought.
                                            --- Percy Bysshe Shelley

 

There are turning points . . . watershed events . . . defining moments . . . in our lives all the time.

Sometimes, we notice them right away.  But, sometimes, it takes a little time and perspective before we can really understand just how pivotal and important certain events are in our lives.

Whatever the watershed, it is marked by a definite before . . . and a definite after.

For me, the biggest turning point in my life (so far!) has been my cancer diagnosis and treatment.  The contrast between my before . . . and my after . . . is remarkable.

Or.  

Maybe. Not.

Maybe . . . 

I'm just more aware.

I can just say that, for me, going through cancer and treatment -- and coming out the other side -- created a definite dividing line in my own life.  

Before.

After.

Although the whole cancer nightmare is something I could certainly do without, I can use it as a marker in my life . . . for the new and different and interesting things that have happened in the last five years.  Things that I may not have been open to . . . before.

Friendships.

Travel.

Work.

Blogging.

Open-ness and sharing.

The liberating embrace of natural hair color.

A just-do-it sense of adventure.

A seeking . . . that just wasn't there . . . before.

Today . . . I celebrate my Five-Year-Blog-Anniversary.   Thanks to ALL of YOU . . . for being part of my after.  It's been a privilege and a pleasure to share my journey over the last five years with all of you.