Live and Love!
By: Colleen Lanin, The Travel MamaDecember 4th, 2009
This post has nothing to do with travel. It has to do with parenting and marriage and patience and love and hope and letting go. It has to do with a 35-year-old mom of three named Anissa Mayhew who recently suffered a massive stroke, and the lessons her family is teaching me.
I do not know Anissa personally. I was not a regular reader of Anissa’s blogs, Hope4Peyton, Free Anissa, or Aiming Low. I knew of Anissa because she was one of the speakers at the Type-A Mom Conference, which I attended this year. I can’t remember if I met her among the hundreds of moms at the conference, but I have been touched by her story and her family. I have been amazed by the outpouring of love she has received from her friends in the Twitter and blogging communities.
My husband and I got into a fight this morning. It was about something stupid. It always is. Then I read Anissa’s husband, Peter’s latest blog update. Whenever I’m feeling cranky, I read one of his updates and I am reminded of the title of one of Deepak Chopra’s books, “Don’t sweat the small stuff…and it’s all small stuff.”
It’s a big responsibility being someone’s spouse. We have to remember why we married each other in the first place. We have to agree (and disagree) about how to parent our children. We need to make difficult decisions about this life that we share.
Do me a favor…read this latest post by Anissa’s husband, You Can’t Always Get What You Want. Send some positive energy to her and her family. Then go tell the people in your life that you love them. Okay?
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Tags: Anissa Mayhew
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There IS life after the kids grow up!Always take time for yourself but remember to do things for each other and take pleasure in doing so. We all look outside of our homes to do something for someone, when the most important “someone” is right there sharing life with you. someday, the children will grow up and have lives of their own, hopefully, and the parents will have each other.A little insight from a Mom, Grandma and Wife
Keep up the good thoughts. Anissa needs some time to get better and our wishes can help that time go by faster.
Even though I only met Anissa a couple of times, she is unforgettable. A terrific, warm, friendly and funny gal. Reading her husband’s updates give me hope for her – she’s so strong – and also help me realize how lucky most of us are.