MY TOTAL HIP REPLACEMENT

I'm AMAZED. And GRATEFUL.

THURSDAY, APRIL 20th (2 weeks ago today)

5:45AM - Arrived at the Surgical Center (thanks to my sister JANE!!)

6:30AM - Hip replacement surgery (35 minutes!!)

11:30AM - I walked across the room with a walker. 

What I was most afraid of was getting sick from the anesthesia (big-time personal and family history of this), but the anesthesiologist "hooked me up" with plenty of precautions and it worked! My doctor and his surgical team visited me before noon to say that the operation was a huge success. There was no cartilage left - YIKES! - all arthritis was removed, loose ligaments tightened and a new hip in place. 

The nursing staff (and JANE) cared for me so kindly and skillfully. I couldn't have been more thankful. The Surgical Center has only 12 rooms - all private, large and beautifully, soothingly decorated.

THE NEXT DAY - FRIDAY, APRIL 21st

Discharged. Are you kidding me?!!

In the 1960's when my father had his hip replaced, the surgery was 8 HOURS long and he was in the hospital for days and then transferred to a rehab center for WEEKS of physical therapy.

No physical therapy for me. This is a new concept for sure. My doctor (GOD BLESS HIM) wants the new hip to heal slowly and gently. I LOVE this approach. I was told to go home and pretend that I'm snowed in, resuming normal household activities as I feel prepared to. Bend no more than 90 degrees at the hip and walk, walk, walk around the house. Followup in 18 days.

My sister ELLEN brought me home and stayed for several days to wait on me hand and foot (and HIP). What a Godsend!

NOW for more of the humbling part of this experience........

After reading this book recommended by 2 friends, I began VISUALIZING my recovery and NOT the surgery itself.

My VISUALIZATION included not only comfortable walking, but I MENTALLY SURROUNDED MYSELF with LOVE from FAMILY and FRIENDS. Boy oh boy, did I ever do an UNBELIEVABLE job of CREATING MY OWN REALITY. Family and friends appeared DAILY with food, gifts, flowers, emails, cards, phone calls, visits........ To say that I have been OVERWHELMED, would be an understatement.

THANK YOU TO GOD AND UNIVERSE, THE POWERS OF POSITIVE THINKING, TO LOVE and FAMILY and FRIENDS!!

Starting off with a TEA PARTY and TEA SANDWICHES FOR TWO........

HEALTHY LUNCHES and GIRLFRIEND time. The perfect medicine to speed my HEALING.

POPCORN, FLOWERS and ALEXIA picked up my new prescription glasses. (CLOVER!!!!)

My BIRTHDAY was back in February, but since we didn't have an opportunity to celebrate it then, these Girls INSISTED!!  One week out from surgery and we are PARTYING.

And we added one more FRIEND to the party that day..........

And then one more........!!!

A delicious visit from a local ITALIAN CHEF and his wife - friends of mine. Nice friends to have, eh??

And more FLOWERS!!!!

And CHOCOLATE!!!  Don't you love the message in the box "SHARING IS OPTIONAL".

CLOVER!!!, stayed with my friend DIANE and her husband Michael and their 10 YEAR OLD GOLDEN, HUNTER. They celebrated CLOVER!!!'s 2nd BIRTHDAY while she was there.  Diane said, "Only ONE dog showed up for the party, but CLOVER!!! had a good time anyway."

Naturally I'm anxious to get back to my passion of TRAVEL. But the furthest I've traveled in the past 2 weeks is my MAILBOX........  BABY STEPS, right?

JOAN

CLOVER!!! AND I HAD A FUN DAY YESTERDAY

We got up early (I LOVE being retired!) to be at the car wash when they open at 8 am. A SPRING DETAIL was sorely needed!  It's the first time that CLOVER!!!'s been to the car wash - we had to wait for 90 minutes - boy oh boy was I impressed. She was SUCH a good girl with the people and one other dog (who was NOT on a leash - oh my!!)

A CLEAN CAR!! Unfortunately it won't last long - dog hair is ALWAYS flying off of CLOVER!!!........

NEXT STOP - 

STARBUCKS for a HOT CHOCOLATE. For ME. If you're on Facebook, you may have seen these recent photos of CLOVER!!! having enjoyed the other half of my STARBUCKS HOT CHOCOLATE when I was out of the car for a VERY short while........... not enough chocolate to do any harm, thankfully. 

And yes, the CHARLES BELFOURE book here, "HOUSE OF THIEVES" was a GREAT read and survived the hot chocolate spill. His previous book, "THE PARIS ARCHITECT", is one of my all-time favorites! I can't wait for his next one.......

Does she look GUILTY or what?!! Notice that she won't give me ANY EYE CONTACT.......

Today, the STARBUCKS BARISTA asked, "Would you like a FREE PUPPUCINNO?"

I had to ask "WHAT IS THAT?"

"It's WHIPPED CREAM in a cup - for your dog."  

"YES, PLEASE!!"

Have you heard of this??? Naturally CLOVER!!! LOVED it......

NEXT STOP - 

CVS for my 4TH ATTEMPT at a decent PASSPORT PHOTO. UGH. I never realized how vain I am, but seriously, the 3 previous attempts were ATROCIOUS. Goodness, do I really look like that?!!  Their fluorescent lighting and old cameras - I mean think about it - the photo is gonna be with me for the next 10 YEARS, so I don't want to CRINGE every time I show it! 

Well, I wouldn't say "SUCCESS", but at least this time we got one that is better than the previous attempts. And NO!!!!, I'm NOT going to share ANY of them here on this Blog post!

NEXT STOP - 

OUR GROOMER - for CLOVER!!!'s BATH and MANI/PEDI. She loves MELANIE and her mom, DONNA!! The family is very involved with local dog rescues and they truly love all canines.  

Just starting her business, MELANIE is all set up in the family home. Because of her size, CLOVER!!! gets her BATH in the bathtub upstairs. They said that yesterday, when MELANIE let her off of the leash, CLOVER!!! ran up the stairs and was waiting INSIDE THE TUB, when MELANIE got there. I would say SHE LIKES IT, wouldn't you?!

Photo credit - Melanie Werbos

Photo credit - Melanie Werbos

When I came to pick her up, MELANIE, DONNA, and CLOVER!!! were all waiting on their front porch, enjoying the gorgeous day we had. How cute is she with MELANIE'S handmade EASTER EGG bandanna?! Always "Holiday" appropriate. 

Photo credit - Melanie Werbos

Of course, WE highly recommend MELANIE. Ask me for her phone number if you'd like to give her a go!

HAPPY EASTER!!!

JOAN

MYSTERIES IN LIFE - AND DEATH

A non-smoking friend of mine was shockingly diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer a year and a half ago. She had the best care possible, but a week ago it was determined that the treatments were no longer working. She was sent home with Hospice Care. I was BLESSED, not only to have had many fun times together over the past 15 years, but to also have had time with her twice this past week. 

Sharing a love of reading, she and I regularly exchanged books with each other. The morphine was keeping her very sedated, so her husband suggested that I read to her. It calmed her quite a bit, for which he was thankful.

My visits were emotionally hard after leaving. It's simply heartbreaking when someone and the family is going through this "LETTING GO".  It's so final.

Before my MOM passed away in 1999, she told me that she would be certain to communicate with me from "THE OTHER SIDE", but that I would have to "PAY ATTENTION", because naturally she wasn't sure how it was going to work. I've had many instances since then when I feel certain that she's succeeded.

For instance, I had a dream last night....... my MOM and DAD (both deceased, yet in fairly regular contact with me spiritually) were both in it. In my dream, I couldn't figure out why they were visiting. They were telling me that they had been working on some SPECIAL TRAVEL PROGRAMS to wonderful, far away, obscure places - where LIFE is SIMPLE and CAREFREE.  

"SIMPLE" was made clear as we spoke while my mom showered (odd, but you know how dreams are.....). She was still wearing a batik cotton dress in the shower. She soaped up the dress on herself after she washed her hair, saying it was so she was most efficient in cleaning up.

This morning when I opened my eyes, my first thought was that perhaps my friend had passed away overnight. 

I showered, dressed and went downstairs. The first thing I did was check my texts. She DID in fact pass away peacefully, late last night. WOW. 

I have been "COMMUNICATED WITH" in unique ways (several times in dreams) when someone has passed, therefore I strongly believe in the mighty power of our spiritual lives. I choose to believe that my MOM and DAD APPEARED in my dreams last night to let me know that my friend is being well taken care of in her "TRAVELS".........  very comforting.

A "HIGH FIVE" and sincere THANK YOU to GOD, the UNIVERSE and my TEAM of ANGELS for the ABUNDANT GIFTS I receive EVERY DAY.

PEACE,

JOAN

DO YOU BELIEVE IN "SIGNS" FROM "THE OTHER SIDE"??

Shortly before my MOTHER died in 1999, she said she would be in touch with me from "THE OTHER SIDE". She also told me to PAY ATTENTION because naturally she didn't know how the communication(s) would work.

I HAVE paid attention and I DO believe I've received MANY communications from her, from "THE OTHER SIDE".

I also have discovered, what I believe is a message communicated via my last dog, WILLOW, who died quite suddenly in 2015 at 4.5 yrs old. BROKE MY HEART!!! WILLOW was the first dog out of 6 who had a BIG BLACK SPOT on her TONGUE near the back. You would only see it when she yawned. 

Not long after I adopted CLOVER!!! (from a different breeder and bloodline), I noticed that SHE TOO had a BLACK SPOT on her TONGUE, near the back.......... (background music from THE TWILIGHT ZONE here........)

I choose to believe that this is a message from "THE OTHER SIDE" that CLOVER!!! was chosen just for me, to bring a similar LOVE and JOY back into my life. HAS SHE EVER!!!

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT ALL OF THIS??

JOAN

BOOK - SIDDHARTHA by HERMANN HESSE - (NO SPOILERS)

One of my favorite books of all time!! 

HERMANN HESSE (1877 - 1962) wrote SIDDHARTHA in German and it was published in 1922. It was subsequently translated into English and published in 1951. WIKI states that it became popular in the 1960's.

In late high school (1969) SIDDHARTHA was introduced to me, but I just can't remember by whom, darn it. The first time I read it I highlighted meaningful passages in YELLOW. I re-read it the following year in college and highlighted additional passages in PINK. The following year I used GREEN...... etc. I enjoyed looking back on what stood out to me at each age.

This month I recommended SIDDHARTHA to one of my 4 BOOK CLUBS for our "ANNUAL CLASSIC". When I started to read I didn't see any "highlighting", but instead passages were underlined - some in black ink and some in brown ink. I seem to remember now that my original copy disappeared (most likely it fell apart from overuse), so apparently I bought a replacement.

In my second year of college I had to leave before the end of the last semester, because I had contracted MONONUCLEOSIS (for the second time). I spent weeks in bed recuperating and reading 13 more books by HERMAN HESSE. They are all still on my bookshelf - apparently surviving several moves.

Only 122 pages, SIDDHARTHA is about a young man's JOURNEY, a sort of SPIRITUAL JOURNEY, yet even more so, a JOURNEY to KNOW HIMSELF. The story is pleasant, but the INSIGHTS are what have ALWAYS grabbed me. Ahhhhhh....... the WISDOM.

It's NOT a book about RELIGION. It's more a book on HOW TO LIVE A HAPPY, CONTENTED LIFE - how to KNOW yourself, FALL IN LOVE with yourself, have COMPLETE CONFIDENCE in yourself. The influence of this book in my late teens helped to shape my THOUGHTS and ATTITUDES at an early and formative age. Oh, but there's still SO much to PONDER - SO much to LEARN!!

The following are a few excerpts that stood out to me in the past, with some new ones this time around. I encourage you to read each of them SLOWLY, followed by a moment of reflection, before charging on to the next........

Page 54

     "He, who was still a boy as regards love and was inclined to plunge to the depths of it blindly and insatiably, was taught by her that one cannot have pleasure without giving it, and that every gesture, every caress, every touch, every glance, every single part of the body has its secret which can give pleasure to one who can understand. She taught him that lovers should not separate from each other, without being conquered as well as conquering, so that no feeling of satiation or desolation arises nor the horrid feeling of misusing or having been misused."

Page 58

     "Most people, Kamala, are like a falling leaf that drifts and turns in the air, flutters, and falls to the ground. But a few others are like stars which travel one defined path: no wind reaches them, they have within themselves their guide and path."

Page 61

     "However, many things which he had learned from the Samanas, which he had learned from Gotama, from his father, from the Bahmins, he still retained for a long time: a moderate life, pleasure in thinking, hours of meditation, secret knowledge of the Self, of the eternal Self, that was neither body nor consciousness. Many of these he had retained; others were submerged and covered with dust."

Page 81

     "Now he understood it and realized that the inward voice had been right, that no teacher could have brought him salvation. That was why he had to go into the world, to lose himself in power, women and money; that was why he had to be a merchant, a dice player, a drinker and a man of property, until the priest and Samana in him were dead. That was why he had to undergo those horrible years, suffer nausea, learn the lesson of the madness of an empty, futile life till the end, till he reached bitter despair, so that Siddhartha the pleasure-monger and Siddhartha the man of property could die. He had died and a new Siddhartha had awakened from his sleep. "

Page 93

     "In this hour he felt more acutely the indestructibleness of every life, the eternity of every moment."

Page 106

     "Within Siddhartha there slowly grew and ripened the knowledge of what wisdom really was and the goal of his long seeking. It was nothing but a preparation of the soul, a capacity, a secret art of thinking, feeling and breathing thoughts of unity at every moment of life."

Page 117

     "Words do not express thoughts very well. They always become a little different immediately they are expressed, a little distorted, a little foolish. And yet it also pleases me and seems right that what is of value and wisdom to one man seems nonsense to another."

My copy of SIDDHARTHA is quite "worn", but still holding up. As you can see, I used "STICKIES" this time instead of highlighters or pens.......

If you pick up this book for the first time, I hope you'll find INSPIRATION, ANSWERS, NOVEL IDEAS and/or QUESTIONS to further EXPLORE. And if you decide to re-visit it, I hope you find NEW INSPIRATION..........

JOAN

PADRE PIO PILGRAMAGE CHURCH IN SAN GIOVANNI ROTONDO, ITALY

After sharing my visit to the PADRE PIO SHRINE in PA, I thought perhaps you'd enjoy seeing some photos of the beautiful PADRE PIO PILGRAMAGE CHURCH in SAN GIOVANNI ROTONDO, ITALY, where PADRE PIO is laid to rest in the crypt there. It's a very small town in the PUGLIA region, just north of the "heel of the boot", along the southeastern coast.

Inside the CHAPEL.........

We walked down and down and down the stairs to the CRYPT - a magnificent room honoring and housing PADRE PIO. 

GOLD everywhere - on the ceiling and on the mosaic walls. The mosaics were fantastic. We arrived JUST in time - 15 minutes before closing.

PADRE PIO's body is visible in the center here, where photos are allowed.

On our way outside, we encountered the HUGE CROSS again, lit up with targeted lighting, as you saw in my first photo.  A fitting end to our visit.........

JOAN

A VISIT TO THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR PADRE PIO

When my high school friend, LAURIE WHITMAN, suggested a day trip to the NATIONAL CENTRE FOR PADRE PIO in BARTO, PA (north of Pottstown), I immediately agreed. JOYCE and her mom, BETTY also joined us. 

And CLOVER!!! guarded the car.......

I'm not Catholic and only learned about PADRE PIO, his SAINTHOOD, his MIRACLES and his STIGMATA when we visited the PADRE PIO PILGRAMAGE CHURCH in SAN GIOVANNI ROTUNDO, ITALY this past October. 

THAT place was quite impressive. We even saw PADRE PIO himself, laid out in his crypt - a special room with GOLD everything. Someone remarked that he might not be so happy with these surroundings, because he lived such a simple life as a monk.

THE NATIONAL CENTRE OF PADRE PIO here in PA is on a large piece of land that was blessed for this purpose in 1998. The buildings look very impressive as you drive up, but I was a tiny bit disappointed by the inside of the Church. Naturally it wouldn't be adorned like a modern church in Italy, but the walls here are plain, light in color and not much to look at. Because it was built and is sustained by donations and volunteers, perhaps they were limited in what they could do. 

A "gift" of an extensive DIORAMA is displayed in the back corner of the church. 

A beautiful POPE JOHN PAUL II STATUE stands next to it. 

A lovely embroidered dress on THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY ("MARIA" in Italian) is displayed in the opposite corner.

The photos of PADRE PIO that hang on the entry walls are wonderful. I particularly LOVED the STAINED GLASS STORY that started with his STIGMATA that occurred in 1918 (the 5 wounds of CHRIST that PADRE PIO bore for 50 years). He was the first stigmatized priest in the history of the Catholic Church. Remarkably, all signs of the STIGMATA disappeared shortly before his death........ 

The intimate CHAPEL inside this church was fashioned after the original FRIARY CHURCH where PADRE PIO received his STIGMATA. He was only 15 when he joined the CAPUCHIN FRIARS. 

I was impressed with the CONFESSIONAL on display (behind bars) that he had once used (note the photo of it in use on the right).

Leaving the church we passed several statues outside on our way to the MUSEUM and GIFT SHOP. This statue is of PADRE PIO and the CALANDRAS (with their daughter VERA MARIE) who founded the CENTER.  

VERA MARIE, the CALANDRA's 5th daughter, was born with severe urinary tract defects. She was operated on several times at CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL in PHILA and her bladder was eventually removed. The family was told that the girl could not survive in this condition. 

It was 1968 when they telegrammed PADRE PIO asking for a miracle. He suggested they bring the 2-year-old child to him right away. So Mom, VERA MARIE and her 5-month-old baby sister traveled together to ITALY. PADRE PIO blessed both children by laying his hands on their heads. Mom silently vowed that if her baby girl were to live, the whole world would know about PADRE PIO. 

When they returned back home to NORRISTOWN, PA, VERA MARIE's bladder had miraculously begun to re-grow. From what I could find, as of 2014, she was still alive and healthy. PADRE PIO died several months after their visit in 1968.

I LOVED the MUSEUM. This is the entrance, but photos were not allowed inside. 

It was small, but beautifully displayed were life-sized replicas of both the house where he lived as a young child and the room where he lived for many years while a monk. The main museum room was lined with photos, sayings and informational panels. It's a very manageable museum and we all learned something we didn't know before.

We were offered the opportunity to write a request for a miracle. I don't think I'd ever ask for a miracle for myself, because I don't believe in messing with what my JOURNEY is supposed to be. But I was encouraged today to ask for a miracle for someone else. So I did. I have a friend battling lung cancer. I asked that if it doesn't mess with GOD'S PLAN FOR HER JOURNEY, I would encourage intervention for the sake of her husband and teenage son....... 

In closing - an impressive sculpture of ARCHANGEL MICHAEL near the entrance to the MUSEUM.  I love realistic sculpture.........

What an interesting visit to BARTO, PA.  Who knew??

JOAN