Keepin' On Rollin' On

This morning I went out with arm in sling and walking with my cane for balance to pick up my Sunday paper, which was not there. Either the News & Record had failed to deliver it or one of my neighbors had absconded with it on their way to church. Okay, that was unnecessarily cynical so I'll retract that remark. Anyway, it was early, around 7:30 a.m. and I heard a sound behind me. I turned to see a large German Shepherd, alone, on the other side of the street. Despite having owned a German Shepherd 30+ years ago (my ex's idea) I am generally afraid of dogs, especially large dogs and especially ones unaccompanied by a responsible adult. We caught each other's eyes at the same moment and it took me about a second and a half to see he had his (or her - not sure) front left leg newly and expertly bandaged all the way up and secured around his waist. We assessed each other instantly determining neither was a threat to the other and shared a moment of mutual commiseration over our individual plights. If either of us had been able-bodied we might well have crossed the street to greet each other but simultaneously we decided that was too much work and he turned and hobbled, 3-legged, down the street. I admired his - or her -tenacity.


I came back into the house, made a cup of tea, and because I didn't have a newspaper to read I opened my new copy of AARP magazine to an article entitled, "Rock Icons Roll On". The article details how the rockers of my generation - Billy Joel, Tina Turner, Sir Elton John, Springsteen, and many, many more are still hot acts. Sure there are new kids on the block, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber (who??? - only kidding I know who he is), and tons more and of course there always will be because time marches on and the young eventually get old whether we/they want to or not. (Unless your last name is Cullen but that's a different story.)


The point is not to dwell on it. We have to cope with it, deal with it, and then keep on rollin' on.


I flash to thoughts of my ex-husband of 30 years valiantly battling cancer for nearly a year now with a determination and tenacity I don't believe I would have in me in a similar situation. For years I thought myself the stronger one, the better one, for reasons unnecessary to go into here. Now for the first time in over 30 years I'm not so sure. Because with the odds stacked so highly against him he is keepin' on rollin' on. That takes guts and energy and strength, especially when chemo is draining every ounce of energy out of you.

So here's to you, Gene. Remember this one? "Jeremiah was a bullfrog, was a good friend of mine, I never understood a single word he said but I helped him a-drink his wine, and he always had some mighty fine wine."

So to all of you out there battling whatever your individual battles and challenges are, I say to you - keep on rollin' on ...