50 years have gone by since being born as of June 3rd birthday and some people say that is a huge milestone. I feel like it is just a number that means nothing special so far as inside my lust for learning is the same as it was when I became old enough to know what was going on around me!

The biggest Milestone in my life at an earlier age was learning how to ride a bicycle without training wheels. I still remember the feeling of accomplishment when my Father took them off my little bike and my balance finally allowed me to pedal upright without falling, it was like being given the best chocolate cake with ice cream and a ride to the top of the Ferris Wheel all rolled up together it was so exciting!

Second Milestone that really sticks out was when my paint mare had her colt, the day that Pinto was born was so special because he was the first horse that I owned that was "brand new" and not fully grown when he became mine! I got to watch him grow up, played with him like he was an overgrown puppy dog, broke him to ride myself with help from my Dad and loved him till the day we had to put him down because of old age and illness.

Happiest Milestone was the day my beloved best friend became my sweetheart Husband, December 11th 1981 will forever remain one of the happiest days of my life!

Second happiest Milestone was the day we went and brought home my little Toy Fox Terrier puppy my husband bought me for my 21st birthday on June 3rd, 1983. He was black and white spotted and loved to roll around in the grass, taking a childhood memory I named him "Dice" because he looked like a dice rolling around that someone was trying to make the number 4 with as that is the number of black spots on his back on top of the solid white fur on the rest of him. Best little dog ever, he loved to travel, enjoyed ice cream at the Dairy Queen drive through and could kill a rat faster than you could blink. I had the pleasure and joy of his company for a little over 15 years before he became too ill to go on and had to be let go in 1997. (I still miss my little boy!)

Third Happiest Milestone was the first home my husband and I ever purchased, a single wide Mobile Home in April of 1984, 56 feet long by 14 feet wide with 2 bedrooms and 1 bath. It was fully furnished with a brand new refrigerator, a gas range and the cheapest beds and living room furniture you could ever imagine sleeping or sitting on! Lucky for us we had a sleeper couch, rocking chair and bedroom furniture already so we got rid of the "new" stuff and kept our original furnishings we moved into the mobile home with.

Saddest Milestone is a tie, Fathers Day 2009 when my Father passed away and Labor Day September 2011 when Bastrop County was hit by horrendous destructive wildfires which raged through our neighborhood and many others burning every man made structure to the ground. It felt like my Father passed away all over again when we lost all mementos of him in the house as it burned to ash along with everything else left behind when we evacuated that Sunday September 4th with only a few suitcases of personal possessions, our medicines, small electronics and chargers and our pets and their food and carriers. Life has slowly gotten more on track but losing all our "family treasures" collected over a lifetime still feels like losing a family member at times.
One vitally important thing that my "milestones" have taught me is that no matter if they are happy or sad they all create life lessons that stick with you and in some cases the "happy milestones" help to offset the "sad milestones" that 
come out of nowhere.Like my 9/11/12 diagnosis of MS and the current daily regimen of injections that will need to do probably the rest of my life unless doctor changes the medicine to oral in a few years once all the trials and patient info is satisfactory.

What Milestones stick out in your mind? Which are the happiest/most exciting, the saddest or most emotionally stressful?



Charlee Allden said...

Thanks for sharing so much of yourself! You are such an inspiration.

I think one of the most powerful times of my life was when my father was recovering from surgery from a brain tumor. It was a terribly difficult time, but every day was a treasure because my dad was still there.


Jackie Burris said...

Charlee I hear you, something like that is very sobering and makes us realize just how precious those we love are!