P.S. I Love You.

So I watched P.S. I love you the other night, and well... let's just say I cried a tad bit. Every now and then it's nice to open the floodgates and let the river flow. Everyone has emotions, and showing them doesn't make you a wuss, only a human. Anyways, now that I've got that disclosure out of the way, I'll get to the point. In the movie, the main character's husband dies (it happens in the very beginning, so I didn't ruin anything for you), and throughout the story you discover some of the past events she shared with her husband as she struggles with her grief. And it got me to thinking about my own family and the losses we've went through. (Which only led to more manly, manly tears).



Growing up, I've lived at my grandparents house. Not for disciplinary reasons, but because my mother worked late nights, and my step-dad wasn't in the picture yet. At least, I hope not for disciplinary reasons...
Also, Gammaw's homemade, made-with-love meals help soothed the transition. Therefore, the main male influences I had in my family were my Papa and Uncle Joey. (My aunt and uncle live right next door to my grandparents. And my house is only five or six blocks away. So you can say we're close. At very least, by proximity.) When I was nine years old, I went away on a camping trip, and when I returned I found out that Papa had suffered from a stroke. To shorten a long sad story, and spare my tear ducts for a few minutes, Papa passed on later that year. I still remember how my Gammaw (Grandma minus a few letters - Phonics hadn't caught on at that point) cried at the funeral, because upon seeing her break down, I did too. I never thought I would cry that hard again. And until my sophomore year in high school, I didn't. That's when my uncle Joey, the main man in my life, one of my role models, and my hero, suffered a brain aneurism. I was in school when I found out. They called me to the school office to tell me. I went to the bathroom and cried all through 5th period. Anyways, after a long stint in various hospitals, he left to see Jesus and fill Papa in on what he'd missed those past years.



Anyways, I didn't write this blog to let everyone know how much a sissy I am. I wrote it to applaud my Gammaw and aunt Carolyn. Of course I've known that losing your husbands hurt, but I hadn't realized the pain that lingers every single day. I haven't always treated you with the respect that you both deserve, and for that I'm sorry. There is nothing harder in life than losing a loved one, and to see how both of you have battled through hard times and continued to be beacons of joy in our family is truly inspirational. Thank you so much for your patience with me and helping me through my petty heartbreaks, when in comparison to yours, they are microscopic. I love you both.

So for everyone that has stuck with this unusually dreary blog: Go hug you're loved ones, especially the widows and widowers. Appreciate the bravery that they've shown to continue on with their lives, despite their personal griefs. And don't miss a chance to say, "P.S. I love you."

When Mama Ain't Happy...

As everyone knows, "When Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy."



And well, this past week, I lived and breathed this oh-so-true horror.

I made my mama very upset with me. (Fellow idiotic children, never disagree with your mother, no matter how correct you think you are.)

To sum it up: Mom came and helped fix up new dorm room. Cash didn't agree with designs for HIS dorm room. Cash and Mom got into "heated" debate over floor plans. Both parties became angry and seperated, as to not kill each other. Mother gave Cash ultimatum: Public apology on Facebook, and write a blog about the fiasco, or face the life of Orphan Annie. Cash finally gave in, put his ego aside, and wrote stupid blog.

So Mrs. Danna Hutchinson, please accept my apology, and know that I recognize that you are the superior interior decorator. And ultimatum-giver. And all around winner in this heated chapter of our lives.

Seriously though, I love you, and I don't know what I would do without you. I appreciate all the help and guidance you've provided me throughout my short life (please let it continue to become an older one). Thank you for being the kind, patient, loving woman that I know you are.

Sincerely, your little Orphan Annie.

Don't Worry, Be Happy

Oh Blog, how I've missed thee. Where to begin, you all have missed so much of my life! I have went a whole semester without letting you 5 followers know my every thought, how have you all survived!? (Run-on sentence, don't even care.) Well here I am, to remove your life support and fill you again with the sweet, sweet oxygen that is my life.

This past semester I've loved, I've lost (not really, just for dramatic effect lol), I've made new friends and lost others, made my first B, practiced voodoo on a professor for the first time, exclaimed hallelujah and hugged another teacher, attempted to eat a 72 oz steak, failed, grew gray hair, grew a beard, lost my beard and gray hair, and rode in a car to Tampa, FL and back, totaling 2,600 miles and 46 hours on the road.



What I've gathered from this exhilaration that I call my life is that I'm not as smart as I thought I was. I don't have it all planned out. I tend to stress way too much, and place emphasis on all the wrong things. Throughout most of my life, grades have been my #1 priority. Heck, I almost missed out on my uncle's funeral because it'd mess up my perfect attendance in high school. (I did go though, I'm not that terrible of a person. haha) And although I had convinced myself that there was nothing wrong with that stern focus, I realize now that there is.




While grades are important, they're not worth losing your mind over. With one B, I'll still get into pharmacy school, still earn the same pay when I graduate, and with some luck, still graduate college summa cum laude.

So how this applies to you all: Whatever you're struggling with, realize that it'll be okay in the long run, and as Billy the Bass sings, "Don't worry, Be happy". Life is a beautiful blessing, so don't waste yours by stressing out. Realize that you are made by a God that loves you, that you are surrounded by His people, and be happy. Everything short of this matters not in the long run. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Focus your attention on the people around you, and enjoy the friendships that will bloom as a result. Cherish the people you have in your life, because unlike what grade you made in organic chemistry the fall semester of your sophomore year in college, they will continue to bless you throughout your life.



Hope this has helped somehow.
Mahalo.