Perseverance and right attitude. People don't place enough emphasis on these two characteristics. They are game changers.

Many of you have heard about the difficulties we had on our way down to Alabama and on the way home. We were nearly blocked at customs in Edmonton simply because the custom officers did not believe we were traveling on our own dime to help a community full of people we did not know. It is sad to say that we were met with suspicion, that good deeds are not the norm and therefore those who perform them are not trusted.

I'm getting on a tangent. Sorry about that.

Anyways, difficulty down, difficulty back. When we missed our connection in Los Angeles I was mad. We had done everything we could to ensure we would make it, talked to the right people and tried to double check the gate we needed. Didn't pan out that way. Oh well, we talked to the right people again and got ourselves on a later plane home.

As my dad was driving me home after picking me up at the airport three hours later than we originally thought I was still a bit miffed. Then my dad broke the news to me that my Oma had fallen and broken her hip while she was walking to my parents house. The thing is, my Oma lives in St. Albert and my parents live about fifty kilometres away. All of a sudden that plane fiasco was minor and inconsequential. Now she needs surgery. Being ninety two, surgery is a big deal.

So I spent the day after I got back in the Misericordia hospital. Talking to my Oma was rough. She has Alzheimers and she's losing her English, reverting back to German. She is having hard time following the conversations between all of us and the doctor. She does not know why she is there, but what she does understand is that she is in a hospital and her family is there.

At one point in time it is just the two of us there. She says to me you all think I am dying. Thats okay, I am just happy you are all here. My ninety two year old Oma thinks she is dying and is only thinking about how happy she is that we are there.

The following evening I finally have a chance to talk to Nick. After talking about the trip and my Oma he breaks the news to me that our dog has been diagnosed with cancer and has only a year or so left. My heart hit the floor.

I remember thinking what the h was going on?

After we talked about our options for a while, I started watching our dog. There she is, lying on her bed completely oblivious to the fact that she is dying. She noticed that I was looking at her, caught my eye and came over to me. She started licking my hands and rubbing her face into my lap. I pet her for a while and she went back to her bed for a second nap.

Funny thing is, as I was typing that I broke down. Jill just did the exact same thing; came over, licked my hands and put her head in my lap. She's already back asleep by the bed.

Despite having cancer, that dog is happy. I firmly believe that even if she could understand what was happening to her she would still be happy. I know of no one else who can live in the moment better than a dog. And this moment, here, now, that is what matters most. Heck, I'd wager that dog is going to double her current prognosis just because she doesn't know that she is supposed to die.

So I have two old gals in my life, both of which have taught me invaluable lessons this past week. None of the negative matters when you choose to focus on the positive. Of course, this doesn't mean the negatives do not exist or do not require your attention. But it sure does make the load easier to bear.

I Never Would Have Thought...

So we're home. I've had so many great experiences that I don't know where to start- customs and missed flights, the incredible world class people who made us lunch and rolled on the mats, the chance to help a community, getting to know the locals.

I think this trip is going to be the stem of many future posts, some with hero's and villains and others with just great stories.

This post however, I want to first say thank you to everyone that I've met over the last week, thank you to the three of you I traveled with and lived next to, thank you to everyone who made such life changing experiences possible. I asked myself where am I and what am I doing so many times this last week, and I was stunned with the answers I would give myself.

I am beside a Samuel Mockbee building working side-by-side with four successful martial art school owners.
I am in rural Alabama being taught to ride a Ripboard by a mennonite girl.
I am in a church in Greensboro talking to a pro fighter about software.
I am in a building where bikes are made from bamboo learning simple electrical.
I am in a kitchen listening to Julia Butterfly Hill talk about Luna and the car accidents she recently had.
I am in Selma walking across the Edmund Pettus Bridge with Keshia Thomas.
I am in Pam Dorr's home making pancakes.

I am still stunned.

Every morning after we were woken up by Master Callos I tried to ground myself. I would think what would Sifu Brinker say? He would say something about how incredible it is that we are here, now, in this building. How many little things had to happen to place us in that building at that point in time with that group of people. How incredible is life?

I am still stunned and I am forever grateful for the experiences.