Dear Reader:

While picking up some CVS prescriptions yesterday a song came on Casey Kasem’s Top Forty from 1977. One song I didn’t remember or the English singer ( Charlene) had a stanza that caught my curiosity-“I’ve been to Paradise but I’ve never been to me. ” I started mulling the phrase over and over.

Off the top of my head I figured from the complete lyrics that the woman in the song had fulfilled all her material and fantasy dreams-money, travel to exotic places while ultimately failing to find personal fulfillment.

When I pulled the phrase up on the internet an article from Psychology Today popped up. It started talking about the relationship in ourselves between ” I” and “Me, Myself. ” Haven’t we all found ourselves talking to ourselves-where one side of us is admonishing the other?

I do this more often as I age… talking to myself to chill or do something I don’t want to do but know I should… the secret to inner happiness is getting “I” and “Myself on the same team!

Something like…”I tell myself to calm down and take it one step at a time. ”

So until tomorrow -mother probably summed it up best…” Before you can love someone else… you must first love yourself-find that inner peace… and then go to paradise!

” Today is my favorite day” Winnie the Pooh

It is also a special anniversary… John and Mandy’s 13th anniversary-May 3 2008!

Two weeks later ( after the wedding) I was diagnosed with breast cancer with a three year prediction of life-two years later Eva Cate arrived and I knew I wasn’t going anywhere with God’s help-and obviously His plan has been for me to hang around to see my children married with adorable grandchildren -five… to date.. and five precious grand dogs!

I can find paradise in my garden simply by looking at things with a different perspective!