What a year! To say it was a roller coaster does not do it justice. I know that for many of us, the journey was filled with love, excitement and adventure but to balance it out add a touch of sadness, grief, and pain.  Perhaps that is the path that we all need to take to appreciate what we have, to grow, and to fully feel the emotions of life. As I finish the last of my travel for the year, I now have a few minutes up in the air to look down on our beautiful planet and take stock of what has just happened. The promise of a new year provides us this ideal incentive to reflect.

There is a new movie called “Up in the Air” -- the acting is superb but the story line is disturbing to me on so many fronts.  I recently saw this movie and it made me think long and hard about my life.  Some of the similarities to the main characters hit home -- always on the move and planning my life around the next flight or train ride or even bus ride. Trying to balance home, family, work and self time -- the simple things like getting some exercise or having food in my refrigerator or watering my plants always a challenge to accomplish. It is the most basic of activities that we all take for granted until we have to be organized to get them done.  It makes me laugh when I hear my voice mail messages and friends have been trained to say “Wherever you are, when you get this message, give me a call.”

I had a year that never slowed down nor provided many moments of peace and quiet.  I lost my mom this year and I was with her throughout her battle to live. She cherished every minute. One of my favorite “moments of tranquility” was when I took her outside the medical facility and we sat in the sun for a few minutes -- her face looking up, her eyes closed, her mouth in a smile -- just savoring the warmth on her skin and the joy of being with her daughter.  Yes this was quite a year -- I was in Berlin for the fall of the Wall celebration, in New York to see an award winning play, on the Mall in Washington, DC to witness the inauguration of our new President, on Capitol Hill to speak about veterans’ health and many other extraordinary events, but it was that moment with my mom that I treasure the most.

Next year, I promise to close my eyes and smile while the sun warms my skin and my heart.  And it will be for more than one moment in time.