Get my clipboard!

This may come as a surprise to some of you and for those who really know me… I would hope no shock at all…

I have agreed to be an assistant coach for the Astoria High School Cheerleaders.

I know, I know, but here’s the thing. You know I love it and you know I will offer up help and mentoring to anyone willing to listen. Our school's cheer program is rebuilding this year with a fantastic new coach who loves listening to an old lady jabber on about the sport she’s dedicated so much of her life to… It feels great to be able to be in the gym again and offer up my knowledge to a whole new group of students and friends willing to listen. I missed it friends, too much to admit.

Side note… it’s harder to perform skills and drills after 40.

Oh! For those of you putting money on it… 973 days or 2 1/2 years is how long it took.

42. Thanks for all the fish.

42. It's an age. A shift in mentality. A better understanding of life and what we really need. People ask me what I want for my birthday. At 42 it is less about what I want and more about what we need. What I need is for the world to become a less scary place. We all need to know trust again and regain faith in humanity.

I am calling each one of us to take a day and do our very best to be nice and show compassion for each other. This will look different to each individual, but I ask you to do what you can, however that may look to you.

At the end of the day, ask yourself the following:

Did I offer peace today?
Did I bring a smile to someone’s face?
Did I say words of Healing?
Did I let go of my anger and resentment?
Did I Forgive?
Did I Love?

Imagine the ripple effect we could have.

THIS is what I want for my birthday.

Today we closed a chapter.

Today we closed a chapter. In some respects, it was a very short chapter, but for the last 15 months it is has been the longest chapter of our lives. It has been wrought with uncertainty and confusion. We didn’t always know where the correct information was coming from (still don’t), and we were just trying to survive the day-to-day of it all. We saw so many events, celebrations, vacations, and opportunities vanish overnight. We have witnessed horrible indiscretions, terrible acts of violence, riots, the collapse of our physical and mental well-being. However, in the midst of it, many of us found family. A newfound love in a hobby, craft, heritage, and personal journey. 

Let’s be honest though, it was hard. Very hard. 

There have been many tears and meltdowns but there have also been beautiful connections made with family and friends along with a new appreciation for the freedom to move about our community, our state, our country, and our world. 

For many, we never stopped working and providing services. For even more, we watched with dread the loss of work, support systems, business, and even life. These experiences all define a moment of our lives and will continue to shape our future. 

Today I was able to close a two-year-long chapter. My transition to the Pacific Northwest finally feels real. I am surrounded by geographical beauty in the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean which are walking distance from my home. More importantly, I am surrounded by an amazing tribe of people who respect and share in my joys, my heartache, my struggle, and my success. They are strangers who became friends and often feel like family. They love me, Doug, and Jillian and have accepted us as a part of their world. 

My Someday is here. It’s real and it’s everything I hoped it would be. But we are not done. We are not out of this. We are also not alone. 

Thank you to my tribe. Thank you for your patience, guidance, and character-building honesty. Thank you for loving my child as your own and not judging me when I step outside just to smell the rain and the coastal air. 

Have a restful summer friends. Find your balance and live, love, and recharge. 💕⚓️🪴🌊✨