this blog is officially a year old!

It's my mom's birthday today. Happy Birthday Mom! I wish I were there to celebrate it with you!

It's also this blog's one year mark! I can't believe how much about Bermuda I have penned & wonder if I will ever run out of things to say. I also can't believe how quickly the year has gone by. But then again, time & tide waits for no man & the years are passing us by ever so quickly. In fact, this has been the topic of conversation with most of my childhood & high school friends whom I have recently been reconnecting with over Orkut & FaceBook over the past few months. Friends I haven't spoken to for at least 10 years. All have been remarking on how here we are 10 years later, 10 years older, still not knowing how time has flown by.

So, how do we make the best of things in the here & now? Live life to the fullest? Well, that's a start. We get so busy & sometimes making plans months in advance to fit our schedule, not knowing if we're going to be here next week. No one really thinks about it. And that's a scary thought. I'm not trying to be morbid but there's a reason for today's reality check.

The ill fated Kenya Air crash last Saturday left me shaking my head. No survivors. Thousands of miles away, on another continent, far removed from anyplace or anyone I know. Rescue efforts were on a couple of days later, which was being transmitted on BBC. So, I watched for about a minute & then changed the channel thinking (and I don't know why): No one I know would be on that plane. Or so I thought. This tragedy was about to hit close to home.

One of my childhood friend's husband was on that plane. A couple of days before the crash we were catching up & eventually began chatting about our husbands. When asked about hers, she said he was due to come home from his work that takes him around the world. Shock & disbelief reeled among the large group of us friends & family. Many of us, including me, had never met her husband, but heartfelt sympathies began to pour out to her from all corners. While she, along with her family deals with their loss, we are left with the stark reminder that life is much too short & unpredictable.

My friend, may you be comforted & strengthened by your memories of your husband & may he rest in peace.