Helpless

I hate feeling helpless.  I hate that a nation is grieving its lost and hoping to have their lives spared as well.  Even more so, I hate that one of my very best friends lives in that country and is experiencing it all first hand.  My mom called me last Friday because she was worried about the tsunami hitting us.  We are only 1/2 mile from the beach front and we are beach level, we are not one of the lucky ones sitting on a hill.  Ok, we are lucky to only be 1/2 mile from the beach,. anyways.......I had just woken up so I had not seen the news so I had to ask why on earth we were on tsunami warning and she told me about the earthquake in Japan.  My stomach dropped.  I ran downstairs and turned on the news and the only words out of my mouth were "Oh my God, Julie!!!"  I immediately picked up my other phone and the sweetest voice came on the other line.  "Oh my God, you are ok!!!!!"  I normally am not one to use the phrase "Oh my God" but I felt it worthy in this instance, I thank God that my friend and her sweet kids are ok.  I listened to her tell about the earthquake and what has been happening since.  When I am not talking to her on the phone, I am glued to her Facebook, looking for updates on her and her husband who is in the water pretty darn near everything, so much so that the whole ship is wearing radioactive gear to keep them safe.  I watch our news to see what is happening and my heart sinks everyday when the news of the power plant gets worse.  Then I got news this morning, she is being evacuated.  Where to?  No one knows.  She will get a knock on the door sometime soon with the news that it is time to go and her and the kids just need to follow.  I feel helpless!!!  I cannot imagine the fear.  I cannot imagine having to choose what belongings I need to bring with me because Lord knows what might happen to the rest of it before I am able to get back.  I want to shelter her, i want to shelter that whole nation of people who are suddenly in fear of their lives, not knowing their future.  I know a lot of people are not the praying kind but this is a situation where you need to get on your knees, thank God for your health and your family and pray for those who don't have any of that any more.  If I feel helpless and scared, I can only imagine what they feel being in the thick of it.  Julie, I know the last thing you are doing right now is reading blogs on the internet, but please know how much I love you and am praying for you.  You, Chris and the kids are not just friends, you are family and I love you!!!!!  Stay safe my friend, I know you don't feel it, but you are a strong woman and can get through all of this.  And then one day when we are 80 and still dancing on the bar at Coyote Ugly, we will look back and reminisce about the strength you had in this horrible situation.  To the people of Japan, you are constantly in my prayers and I pray that God gets you through this and you are able to get back to your lives as quickly as possible.  And for the thousands of people who are grieving for those lost, you too are in my prayers, I cannot imagine the pain you are going through.  God bless you all!!!!!!

UPDATE: The evacuation for some reason has been called off.  Obama swears that our American citizens in Japan will be evacuated but my dear Julie was supposed to leave yesterday and they now tell her it needs to be on her own dime.  Airline tickets right now are at $3,500 a pop and she has 4 kids plus herself.  Who can afford $10,000 for plane tickets?  Please, contact your local congressman or mayor or whoever and let them know that our military families need to be evacuated and it needs to happen now.

Weekend Tragedy

So I was a little uncertain on whether or not I wanted to post anything about the tragedy that happened in Arizona over he weekend.  Everything quickly turned political, calling out numerous politicians and government officials and I did not want to get involved.  Not that I don't have views on politics, I feel very strongly in my political views but I am not one to stand on my soap box unless prompted or feel the need to express my views.  However, when I woke up this morning (super early might i add, I am starting a new work out routine and I may or may not have been up at the butt crack of dawn to get my exercise on, that discussion is for another day though) and was able to watch the news (I always watch the first half hour of the Today show while my oldest eats her breakfast), it really sank in, but not in a political way.  6 people were killed and one of them included a 9 year old girl.  They said the gunman opened fire on his target (the congress woman) and then without aiming at anyone in particular, opened fire numerous times and was even getting ready to reload when he was tackled.  I feel sad for all of the families but a 9 year old girl?!  That just hit home.  My Girl Scouts range in age from 6-10, most falling in the middle region, they all have such bright futures and their dreams they want to accomplish one day are out of this world and I cannot wait to hear how they succeeded in their life goals.  So to think that one of them could be taken out of this world in a horrific way saddens me.  I remember looking over at my sweet girl eating her pancakes and thinking, she could be gone in an instant one day.  I think my mind always goes to her possibly dying of a seizure because that is a very real reality for us, but I never think about her dying from the hand of a gunmen who has a chip on his shoulder and more than likely mental issues.  I am sure that family is just reeling, waking up and for 2 seconds thinking of how awful that nightmare was, only to have the wave of grief wash over them and realize that it is not a nightmare but a reality.  I have had that pain hit me, after the loss of my brother mostly.  I was able to keep it at bay for a while but there was a day in which it hit me like a huge wave and I could barely breath.  I guess what I am saying (and I know people say it all the time) but don't take life for granted.  Make sure you tell your family and friends just how much you love and care for them.  Because no matter how much you try to protect your kids or family, it can all be taken away in an instant.  And if you are the praying kind, which I am, lift up a prayer for the families of those lost!!!!!!!!!