Ready for my next chapter

This post is titled Ready for my next chapter and I choose this picture of me which was taken several years ago because it perfectly expresses my current state. In this photo I'm on a cruise I'm enjoying the scenery while I wait for the next activity.

It’s time for an update although there isn’t really much to report.  I’m still here and he’s still there.  We hit yet another bump in the road with his visa BUT we’re not giving up yet.  We are going to fight until…. We haven’t decided what the breaking point will be but I guess we’ll know when we get there.  I’m preparing to go visit my hubby in a few days.  I’m happy to be able to spend my birthday with him again this year.  This has been the longest period of time we’ve been apart to this point in our relationship.  It’s not getting any easier but we’re both committed to seeing the visa process through and to making our marriage work.  We’re way past the distance makes the heart grow fonder stage.  I remain very thankful for the time we did have together right after we were married.  We know each other well and as I’ve mentioned before we have a good balance.  When he’s feeling low I can support us both and vice versa.  To this point we’ve been able to take turns freaking out LOL.

I appreciate all of the support, prayers and well wishes I receive from everyone.  I’m in awe at times of how many people are actually following my journey.  Many times I feel like I’m in this all alone, well with my husband of course.  In the grand scheme of things there are very few people who have experienced anything like this so I guess it’s normal to feel somewhat alone.  You’d be amazed at how many people ask, “Why can’t he just come here to visit you?”  Oh my I wish he could trust me but the reality is that he cannot leave his country at all without a visa.  American’s don’t realize how good we have it.  Get your passport and you can go almost anywhere.  The citizens of other less fortunate countries have to suffer through the visa process.  Recently I was at the nail salon and the owner asked me how it was going.  I began to complain about how long it’s taking, it’s been a year and a half etc.  She listened but then pointed to another young woman  and said, “She’s been waiting almost five years for her husband to get here.”  Needless to say I felt horrible for complaining about my situation when although we’ve been waiting for a year and a half for his visa, the majority of that time we were together and I’ve been able to visit him every few months.  This poor woman hasn’t been able to see her husband.  It was the reminder I needed to count my blessings. 

The closer it is to my trip it seems the worse I feel.  Of course I miss my husband dearly and I can’t wait to see him but I think I’m already anticipating how hard it’s going to be to leave him again.  I remember how hard it was leaving him in the beginning of our relationship.  Then at some point it got easier because I was only leaving for short periods of time, to come back to PA to visit my family here but the Dominican Republic was my home base.  I think it’s getting harder and harder to go there now because I left mentally six months ago.  When I came back in February to start working again I literally brought back almost everything I had there in anticipation of my husband joining me here soon.  Well soon  has been over six months now and there’s no end in sight.  So I’ve been a little down lately.  A good friend/coworker is always doing what she can to lift my spirits.  We work together so she sees me and my mood every day.  The other day I was especially down and she reminded me that “You can’t eat the fruit the same day  you plant the seed.”  Then she reminded me that “The only day on the calendar that matters is today.”  Last but not least she told me that “No matter how good or bad something is, it always changes.”  Today I’m feeling a little better and she sent me the following text message:

“ It’s like the night before Christmas.  You can’t sleep but you know the only way for the next day to come it to go to sleep.  You’re ready to be in the Dominican Republic and you’re ready to never have to go back to the Dominican Republic.  You’re ready for the next chapter.”

I couldn’t have expressed it better myself.

Although I’m ready for the next chapter I’m also very aware of the fact that tomorrow isn’t promised and that spending too much time planning for the future isn’t the best use of the time I have today.  I’m not throwing all caution to the wind and just living my life for today BUT I plan to make good use of every minute that I get to spend with my husband on this upcoming trip.  He will get his visa one day or he won’t but no matter what the outcome our time together no matter what country that’s in is our time together. 

Well that's all for now.  I'll post again after my trip.  Blessings to you all and remember to appreciate all the moments as they come.

In my feels

Today I have no words to express how I'm feeling so I choose to share something I wrote a few weeks ago but hadn't shared until now.  Sharing a couple of recent pictures of us even though we're apart, we're still connected and closer than ever.  

I used to journal everyday but not so much anymore.  I realized recently that I’ve been avoiding putting pen to paper because I’m afraid of what might come out. 

I’ve been trying to suppress my emotions, hold it all together because I feel, well at times I feel like I could explode but then there’s those times when I feel absolutely nothing. 

I sit alone in my house and listen to the loudness of the quiet. 

Every now and then I hear a creak or sounds of the house settling and I’m jealous. 

Yes I’m jealous that the house is comfortable enough to relax and settle. 

I can barely settle on what to eat or what to wear. 

I used to be a planner but not anymore. 

My calendar pages are blank just like my eyes when I look in the mirror. 

I see me but is it really me? 

I can’t seem to figure out how to express this..

is it an emotion?

A feeling?

A state of…

Has time stood still?

Am I moving or have I stopped?

There are often tears

But I’m not sad, happy, or hurt

There’s just tears.

I’m here but not there and

He’s there but not here

We are two heartbeats

One love

In two different worlds

Physically thousands of miles away

But closer than ever

He’s the peace to my storm and

I’m  his voice of reason

When there’s absolutely no reasoning

In spite of it all

I AM BLESSED BEYOND MEASURE

I’ve lived my life to the fullest

I’ve traveled

Tried new things

Learned new things,

Language, culture and

How to love and be loved like never before

I’ve given back what I could

And I’ve accepted what I’ve been given

I’m not where I was five years ago

And I don’t expect to be in this same place five years from now.

I am in this moment the absolute best me that I can possibly be.

Time is what you make of it.

I'm grateful for these moments.

 

Time is something that we all take for granted.  We never know how much time we have and yet we are always putting things off until later.  Saying I’ll get around to it or I’ll deal with it later.

In my lifetime there have been so many inventions and gadgets that are supposed to save us time but honestly, I think I have less time now than I did before.  Recently while visiting my cousin we talked about how the invention of the cell phone has its benefits for sure but also has its pitfalls.  She commented on how often she has noticed that when people are together in social settings they aren’t really spending time together, everyone is glued to their phone.  I admitted that I too am guilty of always being on my phone. 

I think it’s a natural thing for you to become more aware of time as you get older.  As your children grow up and go out on their own you might start to wonder where the time went.  In some cases, you might look back and wish you had done things differently or spent more time when you had the chance.  When a loved one passes away it’s normal to think about all the things we wished we had done or said to them before they left us.  If you’re reading this, it’s a good chance you’ve been following my journey with my husband.  This journey has really taught me the value of time.  You might be thinking I’m referencing the time we were able to spend together over the past two years, and yes, I do value that time but I’m actually beginning to focus more on the time we’re spending apart right now.  After many months of literally crying every day and complaining to everyone about it a switch finally flipped in my head one day and I realized that this time right now, with us being apart is very valuable time.  I wasn’t quite sure how to express it until today when I received an email from one of my daily devotionals.    It was titled the work you can do while you wait.  The premise for this devotional came from Psalm 27:14 Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.    It talked about how our wait is never wasted.  It mentions a few well-known characters from the Bible and reviews how they worked while they waited for promised blessings.  I read and reread the entire email multiple times and each time I read I became aware of another reason why I’m currently in a waiting pattern.   There were and still are so many things that I needed to accomplish.  Having spent most of the past two years in the Dominican Republic there were many things back here in Pennsylvania that were neglected.  I’ve had time to take care of some of those things. 

I’ve been able to focus on preparing my house and myself for my husband’s arrival.  There was work that I needed to complete before his arrival and I needed to be able to provide more support to my mom as she continues to grow and expand on her vision for her business. Also my daughter needed me during the end of her high-risk pregnancy.  My grand babies need more MiMi time.  As I took a few steps back to see things from a wider angle it became very clear to me that there was a reason for this time.  Now that I’ve realized this the days are much easier to get through without my husband here with me.  Trust me I still miss him dearly, but I know that there’s purpose and I need to remain patient. 

This time apart has brought my husband and I closer together.  We talk more, and the conversations are deeper.  More than just how are you doing, what did you do today etc.  It’s amazing to me how he can just look at me and see my mood, happy, sad, tired or whatever.  He can see my sadness when those who I interact with everyday don’t seem to notice.  It’s easy to begin to overlook things or take things or someone for granted when they’re always there with you.  Once they’re gone that’s when you start to realize their absence and all the things they were doing to enhance your life. 

I’m taking this opportunity to slow down a bit and pay attention to all that is happening around me, trying to make the best use of this time.  Of course, I have no idea when this time alone will end or my time in general so I’m trying to make the very best of it.  I encourage you all to take some time to evaluate exactly how you are spending your time.  Is it worth it?  Only you can answer that.  Thanks for reading and I will keep everyone posted on our Visa journey.