……..and if you don’t, then change it!

One thing that I’ve realized throughout this year’s journey is that each one of us has the power to create our own happiness.  Happiness isn’t the result of obtaining something.  “Stuff” can make us happy in the moment, but true happiness lies within.  Happiness is a state of mind.  When we wake up in the morning, we make a decision – to be happy or unhappy.  Sometimes, unhappiness can be the result of something toxic in our lives.  Each of us has the choice to let the toxin become a part of who we are or to rid our lives of the toxin.  The toxin can be anything – an unhealthy relationship, a needy friend, an illness, extra weight, gossip, etc. etc.  For the rest of this year and for the rest of my life, I’ll be re-learning how to eat better – more plant-based nutrition, how to exercise more, and to make the time for things that are most important – my husband and children, mostly.  I’m choosing to be happy.  But, here’s a secret – I was never unhappy – not even this past year – not even with a toxin in my life.  Make the change.  Only you can do it.  Don’t let the toxin overcome you.  Only you can make yourself happy.

I feel like a kid again.  I’m starting this school year with a fresh outlook on life.  I feel great and things are going very well for me.  I’ve never been healthier.  I’ve never felt healthier.  Sal and I had an appointment at the University of Pennsylvania today with Dr. DeMichele, one of my oncologists.  I don’t need to see her again for 6 months which is great.  We have an appointment next week with Dr. Czerniecki, my breast surgeon, for a follow-up, as well.  Right now, I’m leaning towards donating the $15K to Penn for their research efforts.  At least I know that the money will be used – 100% of it – for breast cancer research.  I, personally, know the physicians that are doing the research.  Next week, Sal and I would also like to meet with Karen Wagner, the dietician that we sat with a few months ago, to discuss plant-based nutrition.  My cousin, Christy, passed along more information on this subject this past week.  It’s pretty crazy.  If you haven’t, investigate this a bit.  You know the saying, “You are what you eat”?  It couldn’t be more true according to Forks Over Knives.  At least for me, I have nothing to lose by trying to maintain a healthier lifestyle.

I believe that I’ve written about our obsession with The Sopranos.  When James Gandolfini died, I felt like I lost a member of my own family.  Really.  James Gandolfini looked so much like my Uncle Joe.  I miss him a lot, too.  Anyway, it probably seems like all Sal and I do is watch television.  That’s not true.  We use the last hour of our day together to cool the jets.  So, Sal and I watched seasons 1-6 of The Sopranos all over again.  Then, we moved on to The Godfather trilogy.  The Godfather Part III was really weird – cousins sleeping with each other – but they were all excellent movies nonetheless.  I know that it sounds crazy, but we could all learn a few lessons from The Godfather Trilogy.  So, here it is:

 

TOP 10 QUOTES FROM THE GODFATHER TRILOGY

10.  “It’s a Sicilian message. It means Luca Brasi sleeps with the fishes.”  This line just cracks me up!  It reminds me of my dentist.  Since my maiden name is Fisher, Doc usually greets me like this, “Barbalicious…..sleepin with the fishes!”

9. “Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.”  Just because – how funny is that?!!

8.  “Just when I thought I was out… they pull me back in.”  I think that I like the way that Al Pacino says this line better than anything else!  I also like Silvio Dante’s impersonation of it in The Sopranos.

7.  “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse.”  You have to give Brando props.  That’s all I’m going to say!

6.  “If anything in this life is certain – if history has taught us anything – it’s that you can kill *anybody*.”  Same holds true for cancer!  You can do anything that you set your mind to.

5.  “He’s been dying from the same heart attack for the last twenty years.”  This just reaffirms my go-to:  nobody likes a complainer!

4.   “There are many things my father taught me here in this room. He taught me: keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.”  This line is genius.

3.  “Never tell anyone outside the Family what you are thinking again.”  I’m breaking a cardinal rule of The Godfather but remember that I’m sharing only what I want to share with you!  I think that this line is so important.  Yes, there is a lot of violence in these movies, but family was also important.  Ok, yes, Michael did have his brother, Fredo, killed but you’re missing my point!

2.  “Because a man who doesn’t spend time with his family can never be a real man.”  AND “We don’t discuss business at the table.”  There was a tie for number 2!  Make time for your family and cherish that time.  Time is the most precious gift that we can give to one another.  We’re all guilty of it, but make a conscious effort to put away your cell phone and converse with your kids.

1.  “Good health is the most important thing. More than success, more than money, more than power.”  Enough said.

 

Something else we can take away from The Godfather is this.  We all need a Consigliore – one person we trust with our lives for really good advice.  No one expects us to carry the weight of the world on our shoulders as individuals.  Even Jesus had someone help him carry his cross!  Sal is my Consigliore.  I probably haven’t doted enough about Sal this year.  He’s been so great and I know that all of you have been able to see it.  Sal is one of the strongest people who I know and I couldn’t have gotten through all of this nonsense if it weren’t for him.  You know how they say to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes?  Well, I wouldn’t be able to walk a block in Sal’s shoes.  They’re way too big to fill…..and they stink!  I would not want to be the caregiver.  I’m not strong enough to do it.  So, Sal can keep his shoes and hopefully, for the rest of our lives, we can walk barefoot together!

I’ve enjoyed having my kids home with me all summer.  But, it’s time for them to go back.  Our family room looks like WWF and Cam hops right in with her brother and sister!  We’ve made it through the summer without any broken bones or serious injuries – knock on wood!  We’re all off to a fresh start come Monday…..and we’ll most likely be late!  Sorry, Mrs. Lee!

I didn’t meet the deadline that I had set for myself.  I still have a huge box of thank you cards left to do.  I hope that all of you understand that I was too tired to write them while I was undergoing radiation and I was too busy with the kids this summer to adequately express my gratitude.  They’re coming as life is slowly returning to normal and I’m so thankful for that.

Just a reminder:  I’ve registered a team for Scranton’s Susan G. Komen walk which will take place on Saturday, September 21.  I’ve decided to participate in this race because it’s fun.  If you are able to participate, I’d love to walk with you.  As a side note, I think that the Komen Foundation is great for a lot of reasons.  I believe that Susan G. Komen is the reason that breast cancer is one of the most recognized and researched types of diseases.  However, in this day and age, only 25% of the money raised from the Komen walk goes to research.  My goal is to set up my own non-profit where the majority of money raised will go directly to breast cancer research.  If you want to walk with Barb’s Army, I’d love to have you on my team.  I’m not telling you what to do, but please don’t donate to Komen on my account.  For me, research is the most important aspect in all of this.  It’s how advances are made.

http://www.komennepa.org/komen-race-for-the-cure/teams/

Sal and I will host everyone on Barb’s Army at our house for a very laid-back brunch after the race.  Team t-shirts will also be made.  Our friends, Adrian and Maudeen, at Mad Tees will be printing this year’s shirts for us.  The deadline to order is September 3.  If you’re interested in one of this year’s shirts, please e-mail me as soon as you can (barb6438@yahoo.com).  This year’s shirts are different from last year’s.

Have a great weekend!  Thanks for reading.

LIVESTRONG and God Bless!