One Year at Home With TuD......
So. Today is the one year anniversary of my stumbling into this Haven of Help and Support. It feels at once longer and just yesterday.
I honor the practical assistance: From how to test in public for the very first time (jury duty) to how to deal with the Dawn Phenomenon.
I honor the emotional support: From the struggles to re-stimulate my creativity which took a hike at diagnosis to all the kindness on those inevitable Dark Days that we all experience.
I honor the shared joy and laughter: Over the idiocies of "misconceptions about diabetes" and over personal triumphs, small and large.
I honor, too, my husband and my sister in particular: They have been with me every step of the way, including visiting here and paying attention to us as a group, as well as what we offer individually.
I thought you might all get a kick out of three examples of what I call my Lunatic Notions developed over the last year:
---Everytime I get a number that seems too high, I immediately hear a Beta Cell die a horrible death---they sound a little like lobsters squealing when you put them in a pot of boiling water (something I've never been able to do, of course)
---And at such times, I lose all sense of proportion. I'm pretty good at seeing the Through-Line for any given action, but with a high number, I skip all the intermediate steps and go right to my feet being amputated. It's like my imagination just fails or maybe more like it sort of explodes immediately and vividly to the worst possible outcome.
---There is a naggy old teacher that lives in my head and beats me up when this that or the other thing isn't as "good" as it should be. I tried for a long time to track down just which teacher in my life was delighting in torturing me this way. Only to finally delve deep and see, well damn, that's my voice in my head. One of the perils of having begun my teaching career at age 16.
---Not too long after reading Bernstein and starting to get serious about counting carbs, I paused quietly on my daily walk to watch a Robin working on a worm and found myself wondering how many carbs there were in a worm!
Be well, all......Fondly and with gratitude.......
I honor the practical assistance: From how to test in public for the very first time (jury duty) to how to deal with the Dawn Phenomenon.
I honor the emotional support: From the struggles to re-stimulate my creativity which took a hike at diagnosis to all the kindness on those inevitable Dark Days that we all experience.
I honor the shared joy and laughter: Over the idiocies of "misconceptions about diabetes" and over personal triumphs, small and large.
I honor, too, my husband and my sister in particular: They have been with me every step of the way, including visiting here and paying attention to us as a group, as well as what we offer individually.
I thought you might all get a kick out of three examples of what I call my Lunatic Notions developed over the last year:
---Everytime I get a number that seems too high, I immediately hear a Beta Cell die a horrible death---they sound a little like lobsters squealing when you put them in a pot of boiling water (something I've never been able to do, of course)
---And at such times, I lose all sense of proportion. I'm pretty good at seeing the Through-Line for any given action, but with a high number, I skip all the intermediate steps and go right to my feet being amputated. It's like my imagination just fails or maybe more like it sort of explodes immediately and vividly to the worst possible outcome.
---There is a naggy old teacher that lives in my head and beats me up when this that or the other thing isn't as "good" as it should be. I tried for a long time to track down just which teacher in my life was delighting in torturing me this way. Only to finally delve deep and see, well damn, that's my voice in my head. One of the perils of having begun my teaching career at age 16.
---Not too long after reading Bernstein and starting to get serious about counting carbs, I paused quietly on my daily walk to watch a Robin working on a worm and found myself wondering how many carbs there were in a worm!
Be well, all......Fondly and with gratitude.......
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Comment by Kristin on September 10, 2008 at 2:34pm -
I'm SO glad that you are here!!! And this was a great post to celebrate this community!
Maybe someday someone will figure the carb count of the worm :)
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Comment by debb on September 10, 2008 at 2:44pm -
what a great post and happy 1 year anniversary.
somehow i don't think the robin is too concerned about the carb count. now there's a picture for you. looking out and seeing a bunch of robin's having a carb discussion. heck, any discussion at all would have me looking twice.
as a girl who's grandfather was a lobster fisherman and have eaten tons of lobster in my life, i have never heard any screaming lobsters. then again, shhh don't tell my grandfather (who is gone to lobster fishermen's heaven), i don't really care for lobster as much as i do scallops. ( i wonder if scallops screams too) oh dear i am going off the deep end.
anyway that was a really great post. thanks for writing it.
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Comment by Manny Hernandez on September 10, 2008 at 3:06pm -
Amiga,
I loved your post... it is beyond eloquent. It speaks beautifully to the quiet experience and joy of someone who we all have learned to love in TuDiabetes.
Big hug,
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Comment by Danny Weems on September 10, 2008 at 3:36pm -
Thank you for sharing this with us. as always you added a fresshness to my day and stated me thinking about my experiences.
Blessings
danny
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Comment by Misty on September 10, 2008 at 3:45pm -
Congrats! And I love it about the worm!
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Comment by elaine peterson on September 10, 2008 at 5:31pm -
The worm says it all!
Judith, I say again, if you dance as well as you write, you are some kinda dancer.
We are all so lucky to have you and your wonderful insights (and grand ability to share them,) with us.
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Comment by Sweeter Cherise on September 10, 2008 at 6:21pm -
Judith-
Happy Tudiabetes Anniversary! Nice blog post
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Comment by MelissaBL on September 11, 2008 at 8:46pm -
Always enlightening, ever uplifting. Thanks for your warmth, humor, and poise.
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Comment by Andreina Davila on September 12, 2008 at 9:33am -
Judith,
We read your post out loud in out office (Manuel read it to me) It brought a deep smile in our face, I keep it for the day. Thank you, really.
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Comment by Sohair Abdel-Rahman on September 12, 2008 at 11:17pm
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I saw your photos,I read on the edge of time,I left my emotions as comments on your pictures and knew that I discovered You Judith,beyond words you are.
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