Reality.

This last weekend did not go as I expected. I received a call from my boss Friday night at 7:00PM - while on a date with my wife! - that I had to be at a customer site on Monday for a non-emergency visit. Needless to say, that kind of cast a cloud on my entire weekend. I have been traveling a lot recently, a lot more than normal. I guess that is a good thing, but it is stressful, most of it has been last minute travel. I hope things slow down a bit...

Something happened Sunday night that put the whole world into perspective for me. I found out a neighbor across the street has cancer. He is in his thirties, he has a wife, a little girl, and a baby on the way. He does not have health insurance. That hit me like a ton of bricks.

I have been whining a lot over the last few weeks about the unusual amount of travel. Things went crazy the week after we got back from the Canna retreat, and have not let up since. The only good times in the last few weeks were that I was home for Labor Day, home for Kevin's first day of school, and home for Mary Anne's birthday. I should look at it a little bit different way...

I have my health, and the health of my family. I have a wife, seven children. I have enough money to feed them and put a roof over their head. I have happy, good, holy children. How can I possibly ask for anything more?

Life seems to be getting so hard. Looking at the news each day is excruciating. Hearing about people in trouble or losing their jobs is like a knife in the guts. All there seems to be out there is fear and despair. I don't think I have ever seen a time more full of fear.

If you look hard enough, though, there seems to be hope out there. There are stories in the back pages of the papers about people helping other people, for no other reason than it needs to be done. We went to the Apple Fest in Endicott, and saw people smiling and laughing on a beautiful, warm fall day. My kids went home and planned on what they were going to do for the "night in a box" event at St. James to raise awareness and funds for homelessness. I found out there are going to be over 80 kids there this year!! That is amazing! There is so much hope in the children today.... It inspires me. It seems like I have been feeling a lot more despair than hope recently...

I keep telling people to see the good in others and the world - and yet, I do not practice what I preach as much as I should. I think I need to pray on that more.