Friday, July 9, 2010

CWD Nostalgia

The sun is shining this morning and despite the cloud cover the temperature has already reached above 20C (76F) and its not even 8am.  The house is quiet.  I am letting the males of the household get some much deserved rest after working hard all week and the dogs? Well they are flaked out on the deck enjoying the light breeze that Mother Nature is providing them so far.

The chaos of merging two homes into our one new home is slowly fading although I still can't remember where I have decided to place many of our things but it will come with time.  Right now I am choosing to simply enjoy the silence and the peace.  My office is currently my laptop on the kitchen table.  Far from ideal but the view of the backyard makes it a sacrifice I can handle until my fiance and I get my real space ready.

As I sat down and booted up this morning, I of course checked out the Facebook world to see what was happening.  The bulk of my Facebook friends tend to be people with diabetes or families of someone with diabetes.  Diabetes is obviously a big part of my life and I have met many people and made some incredible friends because of this horrible disease.

Today I was treated to many great new pictures. I love getting the chance to "see" so many family and friends and glimpse into their lives as I give them the chance to glimpse into the chaos and wonder we call our life. This morning brought on much nostalgia and excitement. For those of you who don't know, www.childrenwithdiabetes.com has just finished up another amazing conference for families with diabetes in Orlando.  It was a wonderful idea that came together out of friends wanting to vacation together and now...well its an experience that I would recommend to anyone. I am hoping to go back one day soon but until then I love seeing all of my amazing friends in these great pictures and remember back to when we joined them.

Jeff Hitchcock and Michelle Rago are amazing with a camera.  They capture the very essence of people.  They capture innocence, fun and the amazing friendships that this community has created. I have said it time and time again, I truly don't know what I would have done for all of these years without so many of these people.  I am blessed to have found a group of friends who have been there for the diabetes crisis's, for the days when I just don't want to do this any more, and for the celebrations that only people with diabetes can understand.  They have encouraged me.  We have laughed together and we have shared tears.  It is amazing what the Internet and some amazing people coming together can create.

Now as I said, I wistfully look back at the Florida Conference and long to sit beside the lake with friends like Stacey, Lauren, Michelle, Joanne, Rita, Julia, and more but once again I also have another CWD event to begin to get excited about.  I have been very lucky to have been a part of the Canadian CWD conferences since their inception.  I get to go and hang out with some wonderful friends.  I reconnect with my rock, Laura and so many more. Through these conferences, I have also been able to put faces to some of my fabulous Canadian friends. I look forward to seeing so many of them again and watching their children grow. 

This year will be a shock for my Canadian friends because my children will actually be with me! I know, who would go to a CWD conference and leave their kids behind? Me! The first year they had already been to FFL in Florida and spent time with their father instead.  The next time was during school so they stayed behind once again but this year? Well, its in Vancouver which is where I am from so I am booking flights, packing up the entire family, doing some visiting with one family before we all get together to enjoy learning and fun with our other family!

Its amazing how people who are spread so far away can become so important to your life. I love gatherings like these as well as the small, more informal gatherings we have been a part of.  I look forward to each time I get to get together with my diabetes family and just hang out, be ourselves and know that we all "get it".  To know that we are all fighting the same fight.

See you all soon!

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