Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Tonight's picture was taken in December of 2006. We took Mattie to Boston to celebrate Christmas with Peter's parents. Behind their house are part of the Middlesex Fells Reservation. 'Fells' is the Saxon word for rocky, hilly tracts of land - an apt name for this scenic area which is rich in local history. Peter spent a good part of his childhood playing and navigating in these Fells and I know he enjoyed introducing them to Mattie. This picture captures two generations of Brown boys enjoying these woods! 

Quote of the day: We can never judge the lives of others, because each person knows only their own pain and renunciation. It's one thing to feel that you are on the right path, but it's another to think that yours is the only path. ~ Paulo Coelho


My friend Tina sent me tonight's quote. To me this quote needs to go hand in hand with the quote I posted on Monday about compassion. When we live a compassionate life (which I KNOW is not always easy to do), then criticism, judgment of others, and the authority of knowing the "right path" seems to melt away. Because in reality there is NO right path. There may be the conventional path, or the path most popular and easily understood and accepted, but that doesn't necessarily make it right or the best. The challenge of life is finding the confidence and courage to navigate your own path. Life is ever changing and throws all sorts of curve balls your way, being fluid, flexible, and introspective are therefore a necessity. In all reality no one can carve out a path and follow it throughout one's life. You can't, because you do not live in a vacuum. Life isn't always organized, nice, or predictable despite our best attempts. Perhaps I learned this lesson the hard way through Mattie's cancer. Frankly I do not feel I needed to experience childhood cancer to develop compassion, to understand that we all suffer our own pains (both visible and invisible), and the importance of being open to alternative paths. But now that I have survived Mattie's battle and live with his death, I not only relate to this quote, but it is a part of me. It is how I try to live my life.

There are some days when writing for me is super easy and other days when I sit by the computer and feel stuck. I am dealing with the latter today, so therefore, I will be closing now and as always appreciate you visiting Mattie's blog and reading about our journey.