This morning I was doing my usual walk with my beautiful boy Sundance and I was trying to create a good analogy about the mud puddles in life.  Many times I have talked about pointing your journey toward the light, toward the good things in life but no matter how much we want to we cannot avoid mud puddles.  Spending so many years....trying over and over to fix the mud puddle so someone else wouldn't accidentally step in it has been a massive waste of time.

If I fill it with dirt I will only have to dig another hole that will eventually fill with rain.  Even if I scooped out the water it will rain again.  It wouldn't really matter because after I was long gone someone else would just dig another hole or even several.  I certainly wouldn't walk all the way back to fix those but there were times in my life that I might have.   In 2007 I posted the "Hole in the sidewalk" and even though there are similarities it is definitely different. 

Walk around those puddles of mud.  If on your journey you are able to put up a sign to warn someone who is walking behind you that's alright but keep your eyes on the prize so you will see the mud puddles ......walk around them. 

You can't fix the puddles of mud.

Continue your journey and walk to what you want most in life.  Slowing down for things you cannot fix only makes for a much...much...longer journey.

Sometimes I get lost in this thing called living and I forget how quickly it can be taken from us.  As we are preparing for the WLSFA event in Las Vegas I am reminded about the purpose of this organization.  My previous post explained the reason I am passionate about the WLSFA and how a couple of miracles have already come from the tragic suicide of my friend Alice Neff.  On May 13th-15th we will be attending the WLSFA Mother of All Meet and Greets in Las Vegas, Nevada.  You can view the agenda here.  On Saturday morning The Alice Neff Grant will be presented to Connie Bailey who will be receiving the miracle of weight loss surgery through the WLSFA. 

If Alice only had known that she would not be forgotten...that others would be helped just like her.  In the video "Surviving to Thriving" Connie talked about getting her hopes up and thinking that once again she would be approved when yet again she would be denied.  Those words brought tears to my eyes because Alice said the same thing so many times. 

Excerpt from Alice's correspondence:

hello hope your weekend event went well.  Well I had written my state rep. and they called acting like they would do their utmost to help. And I tried not to get my hopes up, but of course I did to a certain extent. Only to have those hopes dashed once again. When they called me back again and told me there was nothing they could do. It just felt like one more blow. And I was stupid and started crying. Then my disabled daughter came in the room by me(she scoots around the house on her butt to get around) and I quick dried my face. As I try to never let her see me crying. As I do not ever wish to upset her. I am trying to not lose my faith in God, in asking for his help to be allowed to have this WLS. But it at times gets difficult. At times i just wonder.

Alice wrote dozens of people and organizations begging for help.  She had severe lymph edema that drained so much fluid that it stayed infected.  Her list of comorbidities was immense. 

Please consider attending the WLSFA Mother of All Meet and Greets in Vegas.  There will be wonderful speakers of all ranges *including Bo McCoy of Obesity Help* and lots of fun will be had as well. In the near future there will be announcements made regarding something BIG and incredible.   At the very least...please join (it's free).... and lend your voice to this organization that will make a difference in the future of so many deserving people.... that were just like Alice.

Special thanks to Bariatric TV for the documentary "Surviving to Thriving" and to Antonia Namnath (WLSFA)

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