2 Weeks vacation

For the past two weeks I have been avoiding the heat of Dallas while I've taken vacation time. I spent the first week in the Texas hill country as an adult sponsor for my church's Junior High Jubilee. It was a nice break and nice to get to know some of the future leaders of the world. It was a bit boring and lonely for me socially, but very inspiring and spiritually rejuvenate. I felt like I fulfilled a great need as an adult sponsor that looked at the group inclusively as opposed to exclusively. The highlight of the week was the evening "vespers" which included light guitar music, prayers from the minister and every participant and sponsor lying on our backs looking up at the stars, moon, and clouds from the floor of the tennis courts.
I returned to Dallas last Thursday and last Friday, I picked up my high school friend Polly at the airport. Polly and I spent 1 1/2 days playing in Dallas before our flight Sunday morning for Cancun, Mexico. Unfortunately, on Friday morning before I picked up Polly I received some bad news. Patrick, my boyfriend, called to tell me his mother, who was diagnosed with terminal cancer a year ago and been functioning relatively normally until recently, had been taken off her Chemo and a hospice bed and such was brought into the house. The doctors said she didn't have much longer. With a heavy heart, I offered to give up my trip to help Patrick and his family. Since everyone from his family was coming to town, Patrick told me he'd rather I went on my trip. So, I spent my second week of vacation in Cancun with Polly. She and I just returned last night and we had a wonderful time. We played in the sun, the Caribbean ocean, in the pool, shopping, and on a day trip to the capital of the Mayan civilization (Chichen Itza). We swam in a cave and I even got a massage on the beach with the waves crashing in the background. We had wonderfully relaxing time and reuniting an old friendship.
Unfortunately, we had to return from paradise to a harsh reality. First, I got a voice mail from work saying that I had to make flight and hotel reservations in Albuquerque NM for Sunday night through Friday for the next 3 weeks (minus the Fridays and Mondays I'm taking off for Karen and Will's wedding and my second cousin's wedding)...Yuck. Then I called my mom and found out that Patrick's mom (also a friend of my mom), was not well at all. She only has few more days and funeral arrangements are already being prepared for sometime this week. I immediately call Albuquerque and pleaded with them to find someone else to take the job. Fortunately, they were willing to work with me and I'll be working from the Dallas office at least this week. It's been very difficult. I saw Patrick last night and he is so tired and worn out. Since he is the only one of his siblings living in the Dallas area, he has kind of been in charge of everything from planning the funeral, to entertaining his whole family (his father, 2 brothers, 2 sisters-in-law, 1 niece, 3 nephews, one sister, and the grandfather of one of his sister's in law with alzheimer's).
Harsh reality has set in.
If you pray, please include the Triplett family in your prayers.
One week from now I will be swarm in as a CPA and then I will get to enjoy a reception and family gathering/house warming at my Cousin Catherine and her husband's new home in Arlington (Fort Worth).
I will be looking forward to another vacation in 2 weeks for Karen and Will's wedding.
In 4 weeks, I'll be going to Santa Barbara, CA for my second cousin's wedding/family reunion.
See, I can update my blog!
I hope all is well with all of you. I'm thinking about all of you. Take care and keep in touch.

Much love to all....