I am a widow of 5 years who lost my husband to Alzheimer's. It was a long goodbye but I had always known that one of us would be left behind. In our younger days, even though he was 9 years older than I he had such a lust for life, I thought he would live on forever. But I am pragmatic, and watched my mother embrace life alone after my father died. She was another person happy and full of life who taught me to be happy I wake up every morning.
I was a high school English teacher who loved being in the classroom and enjoy the visits of former students who still drop by.
There are so many new worlds to conquer, and so little time, but I love reading and living vicariously by the young people in my life (a daughter, son in law, and two absolutely amazing grandchildren).
I grew up Jewish in a small southern town and didnt know I was marginalized until I went to college to ind many others who had been exposed to a similar tradition. I have never been able to accept the literal ideas of stories in theology, but see them as fables written by men to teach society an ethical code for the good of societal interaction. Most religions provide the same function, if one doesn't get too caught up in specifics.