Tomorrow starts a new quarter for my girl -- her third quarter of her first year of college. Exciting. But we found out that English has to be re-taken in summer. (Hmmm, I'm an English Major, but my artist daughter isn't. Oh well. We are thankful for our blessings.) She's continuing in college and she's happy and healthy and safe. I'm grateful for my life and my wonderful, "arty" daughter.
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I'm sitting here at my laptop while the sunlight fades into twilight to the tune of a Mariachi Band across the street. Yep, my neighbors are celebrating big time with a live band. Usually, their parties just have recorded music, so this must be a special celebration. Thanks for sharing the music and the BBQ aroma wafting through the air.
And what am I doing? Musing over the SCBWI conference I attended yesterday (I'll write about it another day. I need some perspective on the material presented.) One thing happened that I'll share now. A fellow author had a diabetic episode and I was the first responder! She wasn't responsive when I talked to her, touched her and tried to rouse her. She looked at me with unblinking eyes, sweat profuse around her neck and hair. When she didn't respond, I realized something was wrong and thought low sugar, but didn't know what to do. I needed help.
I called a volunteer and she got a nurse -- soon there were two nurses and a pediatrician. Paramedics were called and we gave her sugar water, but she wasn't responding fast enough. Thankfully, the paramedics arrived and gave her I-V, checked blood pressure, heart rate, and kept at her until she knew who and where she was. Then they took her off to the ER where her son made sure she got home safely.
I was glad I was there in that moment. I was stressed and shocked, but after a hug and some crying, I was okay. When you are involved in such a pivotal moment in time, you reassess. What's important. What should be prioritized. What direction are you going with your life? More about that this week, too.
The watchword here is the Boy Scout Motto: Be prepared. If you have a health condition, wear your medic alert bracelet or life alert necklace prominently. It's also a good idea to have a card of instructions in your purse or wallet -- just in case. In my phone contacts, I have two family members listed: ICE/their name. ICE means In Case of Emergency, call one of these two. I didn't list my girl because I want more mature heads to be contacted to make sure she's taken care of if something happens to me.
I will also be contacting my mortgager to put my house in my Trust (better late than never). I need to up date my Will and other documents. Be prepared. I need to write the Letter to my Daughter -- just in case. It's probably a good idea to get rid of more of my junk, too -- We'll all be traveling lighter at the end. We should try to make it easier on those left behind. Was my friend's episode the catalyst for all this end-of-life planning? No, I've been thinking about it for awhile. Also, the sermon in church today was in the same vein, about Lazarus and his return from the dead (and dying twice). We all need to prepare for our end. Not to be morbid, but simply to leave our affairs in as good an order as we can. It's part of our job as parents, most especially parents of teens. They will want to be strong -- be adult. You can help them with this by planning, and now isn't too soon.
Tags: help, priorities, first aid, support, planning, dealing with problems, thinking on your feet, being there for others, end-of-life plans.
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