When your number's up

One of the realities about working in a skilled nursing facility is that people pass away. Sometimes it's people who've been sick for awhile- eventually they stop getting out of bed, become less and less responsive, eat less and sleep more- and you get the feeling it's coming.

Other times it's completely unexpected. I've heard about two patients recently who died suddenly. They had been doing really well. They were pretty independent and cognitively aware. Even though they were both old, it was shocking to hear about them passing away.

What I've come to realize is that our days our numbered by God. He knows when each and every one of us will draw our last breath. There is nothing we can do to stop it. Conversely, there is nothing we can do to hasten it. Jerry Falwell used to say, "You're invincible until God is done with you."

I've been reminded that life is brief. It makes me want to live life to the fullest and enjoy every moment as much as I can. To love God and to love others, because that's what matters most. I want to know that when I die, I lived as much as I could in the time that I had.

Go big or go home

Usually I'm really excited for the Olympics, but this year they kind of snuck up on me! I didn't watch much of it for the first week and wasn't really that concerned about watching it this year. But then I started watching some highlights, and remembered why I love the Olympics! It's for the moments that you see something crazy, when you see someone absolutely dominate their sport, or when you see something that's never been done before.

I also realized that I have a ton of respect for the people who take risks and "leave it all on the field". A lot of times in the Winter Olympics, the competitors can end up with a significant lead and have the option of playing it safe. I love it when the athletes don't do that, but continue to thrown down their best efforts.

Lindsey Jacobellis. She was so fast in all the qualifying runs for Snowboard Cross, and continued to dominate in the semifinal heat. She had a significant lead and could have slowed down a little and taken it easy (she just had to be in the top 3 to advance). Instead she kept pushing herself to go faster and ended up wiping out. No medals, but she gave it her all.

Shaun White. I have a lot of respect for him because he throws down his hardest tricks even when he doesn't need to. In the men's halfpipe final, he was getting the most air and attempting the hardest jumps. He didn't win, but he's still one of the best at his sport.

Women's Aerials. All 3 women in the final brought their A-game, but it was Lydia Lassila who impressed me the most by attempting the most difficult trick of them all. She ended up falling on the landing, but still got the bronze. Xu Mengtao, the silver medalist, also had a near-fall, which just goes to show the level of difficulty that these ladies were attempting with their jumps!

And lastly, one of my favorite events that I've watched this year: Men's Slopestyle Skiing.
Joss Christensen, Gus Kenworthy, and Nick Goepper swept the event for the US with some of the craziest and coolest jumps I've ever seen. It was such a fun event to watch. They all nailed it.

This year, I'm loving the skiing and snowboarding the most!