This is a bit long, but I hope you’ll take the time to read until the end.  Thanks!

It’s a funny thing, what we call life.  You never quite know what to expect, even if you think you do.  It’s been awhile since I’ve placed my hands on the keyboard and typed in this little space I once called home.  I’ve been away.  No, not on vacation, although I’m pretty sure I could use one.  It’s because I haven’t had the real desire to sit down and write.  And that scares me.

This past weekend has been one filled with great emotion.  Some happy, some sad, and some worried.

On Saturday, we celebrated our dearest friend, Jim, as the town of Ossining, NY, named a street after him.  It was on the corner of Sherman Place where they unveiled the new sign, honoring a man who had given many years to the fire dept, and later became a crossing guard, knowing each child by name and loving every minute if it.  In the end, he fought a tough battle with pancreatic cancer, until he could fight no more.

James Drohan Jr, proudly unveiling the street sign bearing his father’s name – James Drohan Sr. Place.

James Drohan, Sr.  was my husband’s best friend, having worked with Jim for many years at AIG.  They ate lunch together every day, laughed and cried together, and became almost inseparable.  Jim treated my kids as his own, and always called with silly ways to make me laugh.  I miss him terribly, but I was honored by his friendship and by attending his street naming.  ❤

On Sunday, we said goodbye to another dear friend, Frank.  He was a bright star in our world, and especially our church.  He was nicknamed “the voice of Sunday morning” because he would read passages from the bible during Pastor Charlie’s sermons.  Frank was diagnosed last year, with pancreatic cancer.  I can’t tell you how hard it is to type those two words.  We have now lost two men very dear to us, to this dreaded disease, of which there is still no cure.

Alyssa and Frank at Yankee Stadium. They also made it onto the big screen!

Frank was a huge Yankees fan and when Alyssa was going through a rough time with her health, he asked me if I thought it would be okay to ask her to go to a game with him.  Of course, I said yes! Not only did he take her to the game, but they toured Monument Park, with Alyssa (as she told me) amazed by Frank’s knowledge of the Yankees legends.  On Sunday, March 8, we will honor Frank by wearing our Yankees shirts to his memorial service at Marantha..

And finally, yesterday, Alyssa spent the day in the ER, experiencing more health issues.  It’s been a rough 30 years for my baby girl, but she plows through like a champ!  She’s home now, and back to her dog walking obligations.  She’s a tough cookie, and I’m so proud of her!

I, too, have had a setback with my health, but I refuse to allow it to tear me down.  Although I haven’t been writing as much as I’d like, I am working on a book, chronicling my health issue over the past year.  It’s a mix of prose and poetry, and I’m hoping it will be complete by the summer, this year.

Thanks for reading this far.  I miss all of you, and hope to get back to blogging, and poetry, very soon.  Until then, be well, dear friends.

Love you all ❤

Dorinda