Life Lessons From Your Soul - Life's Tragedies

You never know when you will be asked to meet a huge challenge in your life. There are so many possibilities that can result in huge emotional upheavals that leave one questioning the meaning of horrifying circumstances. Why do we have to go through these trying events - sudden death, catastrophic illness, accidents, natural disasters? The answer lies within the individual who expereinces the event. The lesson is different for each of us.

I have had the honor of being best friends with Isabel Maisano for 34 years. We met at a birthday party when we were 4 years old and she moved next door to me in Arlington, Virginia when we were 6. Our friendship has withstood being parted by oceans and opposite sides of the continent. Physical distance can never part what lives in the hearts and souls of beings that have agreed to create lives together.

Isabel had a seizure on May 4, 2006, went into cardiac arrest and has been in a coma since. The prospect of losing my best friend is certainly a grim one. The lessons have been flowing like water ever since. They come so fast that I can hardly descriminate. My perception is muddled and I am emotionally spent after 5 days of taking care of her husband and three children - whom I love with all my heart. As I write this, thier oldest daughter, Kathryn emerges from her room late at night in tears, in need of a hug as she deeply misses her mother in the night. God, I want her to come back to us . . .

I have seen a depth of love that just is not witnessed on an ordinary day in the life. I have watched hundreds of people coast to coast who are sending her love for her recovery. I feel so moved to watch the kids, their friends and family spend countless hours in the waiting room deepening their bonds, laughing, crying, hugging and loving one another. I am learning perseverance, strength, and that's it's fine to let go and cry - even if it's in the milk aisle of the grocery store.

I miss my Isabel. I pray she comes back soon. I pray that she fully recovers and will be reading this blog one day with tears in her eyes just like the tears I have in mine. I pray that the best thing will happen for all involved even if it takes us decades to see it. I pray that I can let go of the result that I want to see happen and just trust in the soul to know.

So many lessons. Thank you to Isabel's soul for profoundly enriching my human experience here. You have taught me about the illusion of goodbye and here we go again . . .