Blog

YourHub.com \\ Green Valley Ranch \\ Blogs \\ Life \\ Philosophy

Blog Entry 12 of 68 The Write Words

I hope to write about anything and everything that comes into my mind, as long as it is in good taste. I hope to communicate effectively and stimulate thought and conversation. I can't wait to get started!

Blog Url: http://denver.yourhub.com/~ErinsBlog

Entries:

After mountain-top experience comes the valley

e-mail to a friend | print this | link to this

NEXT › ‹ PREVIOUS

Contributed by: Erin Di Paolo on 12/10/2006

Does anyone else out there often wonder why life is so difficult? Do you wonder why there can't be an entire day without problems? Maybe not. Maybe I am the only one on the planet who wonders why. For me, each day brings challenges. Most of the time it is nothing major, but when things are added up, it tends to be just a bit overwhelming.

Take for instance, last night. I had looked forward to this evening for months. My friends Holly, Amy, and I were going out to dinner, then to an Andrea Bocelli concert. If you do not know who Andrea Bocelli is I have two words for you: I'm sorry. He is a blind tenor from Italy, as gorgeous as his voice is heavenly. None of us thought we would ever get to see him in person -- first, because he tours the world and we didn't think he would come to Denver; second, because the tickets are so expensive.

We ended up getting decent seats, even though they were in the nosebleed section. It mattered not; it was a blessing and a gift to be able to go at all.

We had an incredible dinner, with lots of laughter and deep conversation, a harried drive to the Pepsi Center in crazy traffic, but finally we arrived, safe and sound, at our destination. The concert was amazing. I think we all felt like God was personally rocking each of us gently in his arms. It was that comforting.

As we were making our way home, my van began to make a terrible noise. Knowing nothing about cars, I panicked, but Amy remained calm. She told me to pull over as soon as I could, so I did. We ended up in a pretty scary part of town, flustered and a bit unnerved.

So what did we do? We called my husband, of course, who was sound asleep. Like he does so many times, he bailed me out, coming to our rescue, picking up three women and one wheelchair, at 11:30 at night. You have to love that.

As we sat, waiting for him in the McDonald's parking lot in a seedy part of Denver, we managed to find humor in the situation. Amy and Holly were both hungry, so Holly tried to get them food; only the drive-thru was open. There was no way I was moving the van one inch. We joked about getting Amy's wheelchair out for a spin through the drive-thru. Of course, that was a no-go. Amy whined incessantly about wanting something salty; I suggested she lick her skin.

Holly's girdle and panty hose were killing her; she shedded them with no second thoughts. Later, when we arrived back at my house, her panty hose were MIA. Amy joked that since they remained in my van that we would later hear of someone robbing that McDonald's while wearing Holly's undergarments (my husband was convinced that there would be nothing left of the car at daybreak after spending one night alone in that part of town).

When John arrived, I was freezing, exhausted, and contemplative. I had told my friends earlier that after a mountain-top experience comes the plummet to the valley. This may sound incredibly negative, but in my life, it has been the norm. It may not sound like a plummet, but to me, it felt like it. Why couldn't the evening end the way it began -- in glorious, heavenly splendor? Why does life have to be so difficult?

It could have been a lot worse. Of course that is true. I am thankful it wasn't. I am thankful for the good parts of the night, for friends, food, beautiful music, and a reliable husband. But I am still disappointed. Every girl loves a fairy-tale ending.

Anyway, the car will make a full recovery, I am told. Something is wrong with some kind of belt thingy and it won't cost that much to fix it. And, contrary to my husband's prophetic utterances, the car was untouched during the night. Thank God Holly's panty hose are still in there, somewhere, not to be used as an accomplice in a crime.

Unlike the car, I am not always sure my soul will recover; sometimes it seems irretrievably broken. Even so, I know that redemption is near: all I have to do is listen to Andrea on my IPOD and suddenly, the healing begins.

< Previous: 'Parents kidnap bride-t...' | Next: 'Barbie vs. Bratz? No ...' >

[Report this as objectionable content.]

SUBMIT COMMENT

Rate the above blog

Current Rating

Based on 3 user ratings.

Talk Back : submit comments to the blog

*Note: you need to log-in to add a comment or rating.

Thank you! Your comment has been updated.

Showing 1-3 of 3 comments

Submitted By: Holly Kaiser

posted on 12/12/2006 @ 8:26:26 AM

Rated Blog Entry

The night was a lot of fun. Other than the car of course. I laughed a lot, especially at my missing panty hose. I loved the part of this blog when you said "God was gently rocking us." I couldn't have worded it more perfectly.

[Report as objectionable]

Submitted By: Karin Malchow

posted on 12/11/2006 @ 7:18:47 PM

Rated Blog Entry

Personally, I think we are automatically punished for being too happy in a given moment. The only thing I can figure is that it keeps the Earth from crashing into the sun.

[Report as objectionable]

Submitted By: Barbara Neff

posted on 12/11/2006 @ 12:56:21 PM

Rated Blog Entry

Erin, sorry about the mishap with the car. This time of year maybe we all tend to internalize too much. Stuff happens. It is not always easy to focus on the good, the positive, the view we enjoy from the mountain top, but focusing on the good whenever we can might help nuture the soul.

[Report as objectionable]

Showing 1-3 of 3 comments

CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

Erin Di Paolo

Denver , CO

Erin Di Paolo has posted 68 blog entries and 1 comment since joining on 3/18/2006. Erin Di Paolo 's average blog rating is 4.45.

view profile » view other postings from Erin Di Paolo »

SAVE AND SHARE THIS BLOG ENTRY

digg	Google
del.icio.us	Yahoo!
reddit	Newsvine

What is this?

BLOG ENTRY RSS FEEDS

All blog entries

All blog entries in Green Valley Ranch

All blog entries by Erin Di Paolo

BLOG LIST

WANT TO WRITE FOR YOURHUB.COM?

Want to see the stories you write and the photos you shoot featured in the YourHub.com Thursday print section available all over the Front Range and with home subscriptions of the Rocky Mountain News and The Denver Post? All you have to do is register, then post a story or column, start a blog or tell everyonewhat events are happening in town. We will print the best stories, columns, event listings, photos and blog entries in our print sections.

Loading Ad