Oh, it's been too long since I've had a chance to write! We've been busy and I guess, busy is good.
Here's a quick synopsis:
Dan has had airline travel to North Dakota, Nashville and tomorrow he will fly to Michigan. In between, he ran a half marathon. It was a struggle yesterday as cramps plagued him, but he finished. Erin and I did our best to root him on along the way and let him rest once we got home...
Erin now has 9 days of school left, but she's hoping she only has to go to 7 of them. She will miss Thursday as the section golf tournament starts that day. If the Mayo Spartans do well, they will qualify for day 2 of sections, which takes place on Monday, June 1. (June?? Already??)
So, Erin has to get ready for section golf and get ready for HS final exams. The next two weeks will be a blur...
I am continuing with my work schedule, playing a little tennis and working on preparations for the golf tournament coming up in July. Everything is happening so quickly right now. The days and weeks fly by and there are still things to get done.
My parents arrive tomorrow, driving cross country from Nevada. Papa has his 6 month check up with the cardiologist at Hennepin County Medical Center this week. There have been no episodes of afib while he's had the heart loop monitor in. It's still a bit of a mystery where the clot that cost him his eyesight came from. We'll know more in the weeks ahead. He's having a neurosurgery consult at Mayo Clinic in June as well. As I've said before medicine is part science, part art...
So, we push on through these last two weeks of the school year. Shannon's friends are finishing their junior years of high school. Seniors... how could that be? Shannon's first best friend, our old neighbor, Abby, graduated from high school this weekend. I remember Shannon's first day of school at Bamber Valley, when Abby showed her how to get on the bus.
The end of a school year is another marker in time. Another missed memory. There is much good in our lives, but always a bit of sadness. We're missing out on things we thought we'd have.
Spending time at the Med City races this weekend brings back memories of our smiling little girl. In 2011, we all gathered there to support her in her fight. She ran the kids race that day, then watched family and friends walk and run in our I Heart Shannon shirts. Impossible to return there and not see her in my mind.
That's life, though, unpredictable and unforgiving sometimes. And yet, there is beauty. There is appreciation for all that we have. Even in our loss, we have gained - perspective, humility, purpose. Thanks to Shannon, we live now with our eyes wide open...
