Heavy

The day has finally come: I've run out of topics. Nah! I've just been a bit distracted. This business of being a grown-up, mom, wife, volunteer, and career person does get a bit taxing at times.

A couple of issues have been weighing me down a bit lately. One is the oil spill. Or, as Paula Poundstone said:

"There is no oil spill in the Gulf. It's a gush. Milk spills from a glass, but if it's coming out of the cow, uncontrollably, it's a gush."

I've always believed that it's important not to look away from the darker things in life. I don't want to gloss over the negative, to trick myself into believing it isn't so. So, I look at the photos of the oiled birds, the dead turtles, the devastated ocean. And my heart breaks. The birds get most of the attention, but so many animals are dying. A lot of them aren't cute and fuzzy, but they are vital to our planet nonetheless. My friend Cindy does reptile rescue. Last year, she took in a staggering number of reptiles from a raided pet store. She had to track every single one (because of the legal proceedings). I don't know the first thing about bearded dragons or snakes, but I did take the time to view those photos in her Facebook gallery. I was just as saddened by a photo of a dying iguana as I would be by an image of a dying puppy. It's all the same.

A few days ago, I did some digging online because I wanted to see if I could make a donation to help rescue crews that are on the ground doing the dirty work in the Gulf coast area (not just to send money to some huge, nebulous corporation where the donation may go straight to some CEO's salary). I found one website that indicated that since BP has committed to paying the bill for all clean-up, donations can't be used for that purpose. If anyone is familiar with the accuracy of that or knows of other ways people can help, feel free to leave a comment.

It is just so hard to understand why the oil cannot be stopped, isn't it? As others have said, "We can put a man on the moon and we cannot stop an oil leak?" I even saw a video on CNN.com the other day where a nine-year-old boy played out his theory for plugging the well. I understand that there are lots of experts on the case, but still . . .

The other weight on my heart is that a friend of mine has been diagnosed with stage four breast cancer. The cancer has metastasized to her bones. She is prepared to fight like hell, of course. I think of her every day and try to send some positive thoughts in her direction. She has three children, including a May 05 kid (which is how I know her - we were part of the same birth month club on Babycenter) and a new baby. Cancer has always scared the bejeebers out of me. I'm the type who likes to feel like I am "doing" something, so I organized a small Facebook group of fellow mamas in support of our friend. We sent cards and trinkets. We took up a collection and sent a Blessing Bag. We are in the process of sending a gift card as well.

A Buddhist friend sent me some Mala beads a few months ago. Mala beads are intended to be given to someone who may benefit from their energy. So, I sent a set to my cancer-battling friend. You just never know what might work.

In other news, we are making the best of summer by hitting the farmers' market and other festive events. The kid and I are growing some sunflowers again this year. We thought it would be fun to plant the kind that will grow to be approximately the same height as our house. The seedlings are currently expanding upward at a rate of about an inch a day (that figure is only slightly exaggerated, I swear). I have no idea if they'll make it to their full height or not, but we'll give it the old college try.

Anyway, it's been a tough week. Would you like to know the happiest moment I've had in days? It was the discovery that Devo has a new album out. Those guys must be, what? 80? This song is fabulous, though.