October 9, 2025 Why at this Age?

I was recently asked why am I going back to school at my age? Short answer is I want to continue to serve the Lord, and do it well. I am now 71 years old, so close to 72 I can smell  it! This year I extended my Univrsity studies and decided to try for another scholarship, for which I recived several.  Some full tuition and other partial paid tuition, but I am satisfied with the blessings God gave me. I have been facilitating Greifshare for 2-1/2 years now, going on my 10th Cycle, facilitating and/or attending. I am also going on my 5th Cycle of DivorceCare, and I have been blessed with the Holy Spirit when God decided I needed to serve and made this my calling.  The courses I am taking through Light University will help me tremendously in helping others in need.  I've always known God had a plan, but until He revealed to  me what He wanted me to do, I had no clue. I am truly blessed to be learning new ways to help, at this age. 

My curriculum at Light University are accelerated course in Christian Mental Health Coaching. I have 12 courses to complete this year.

1.    C-MHC-101        Foundations of Mental Health Coaching to finish by 08/26/2026

2     C-MHC 201        Mental Health Coaching Skills to finish by 08/26/2026

3.    C-MHC-301        Mental and Behavioral Health Disorders to finish by 08/26/2026

4.    PMHC-101          Professional Mental Health Coaching  to finish by 08/21/2026

5.   PMHC-201           Professional Menal Health Coaching to finish by 08/21/206

6.   HFC-101              Human Fourishing Coach to finish by 08/20/2026

7.  HFC-201               Human Flourishing Coach to finish by 08/20/2026

8.  MFRL-MINI        Marriage and Family: Mini Course by 09/25/2025     COMPLETED

9.   TWM 2.0             The Weight Management Challenge 2.0 to finish by 10/02/2026

10. NBGR 2.0           Neurobiology of Grief 2.0 to finish by 10/02/2025

11. PLC101-2            Professional Life Coaching 101 to finish by 10/09/2026

12. PLC201-2            Professional Life Coaching 201 to finish b 10/09/2026

My prayer is that God gives me the time, health and energy to finish these courses, and help many people who are in need with Mental Health Problems, lead them to know Christ, and if it is more than I can handle, give me the wisdom to refer them to a Professional Counselor that can help them. 

 It's the year 2025 now! Wow did I miss the boat? It's been a long while since I even thought about my blog.  We have gone from diagnosis, chemo treatments, surgeries and death all from 2019 thru 2021.  Along with that, the catastrophic Covid struck the entire nation in 2020. The whole world shut down, isolated, and worried they would die.  Many did die, alone, in a hospital, or in their homes, from contracting this horrible disease.  People that were still able to go to work had to wear masks.  The whole nation was unrecognizabe with half their face covered. They were trying times.  For those suffering from the Big C, like my husband, it was necesary only to be out to go to the Cancer Center in the next town to get his required Chemo Treatments (Why is the work "treat" in "Treatments"? There is no treat doing any kind of treatment, and most of the time they make you feel worse!). I digress! My grandson was chosen with his school choir to sing and perform at Distney in January of 2020, and he did an awesome job. They didn't come back with Covid, so it was just starting and they were spared. Then life went on, we did our weekly trips to Thibodaux for chemo treatments, came home with a pump for 48 hours and then back to have it removed.  Week after week, the routine was the same.  Then my brother died on June 14, 2020, and our worlds changed once again.  The Coroner said it was a heart attack, we suspect Covid.  I was only allowed the 1 hour family visit bereavment time alloted at the funeral home. I miss my brother terribly.

Fast forward to January 2021. Chemo treatments are going as expected. Then one day in February, the blood work comes back addressing an insufficientcy with the kidneys.  My husband was asked to see his Urologist because something was starting to block the tube betweek the bladder and the kidneys.  So he saw the Urologist and was schedules as out patient surgery to have a stent put in to remedy the situation. Went home, had big blood clots to deal with, eventually healed and back to the Oncologist for chemo.  Oncologist asks if the mass that was obstructing the kidney was biopsied>NOPE! So two weeks post op we had to see Urologist again and this time, he was sceduled to a re-section of a benign mass that was old scar tissue from a procedure done when my husband was 24 years old.

More to come, later...

Well, the surgery for re-section of the non cancerous tumor had to be done before the Oncologist could continue chemo treatments because if it had been cancerous, it would have meant that the chemo he was getting wan not doing the job.  Unfortunately, he nevet got another treament for Cancer because he stayed in the hospital from March to the 26th of April when they sent us home on Hospis.  My husband, Daniel P. Crochet (Joe) died in our home on May 19, 2021 when his body wouldn't let him fight death any more. I watched my husband die for 5-1/2 weeks. I watched him suffer, in excruciating pain because he didn't want to leave me behind. I watched a CNA wash the skin clean off the most private parts of his body, and I changed his colostomy bag for the last time, just as I had every week since his diagnosis and surgery to save hi life. I have no doubt in my mind that he loved me dearly. He waited until his body gave out before he took his last breath. I felt relief that he was now in the hands of Jesus Christ, as a true believer, and no longer in pain. I know that I will see him again in Heaven when Jesus comes again ad takes us all home, but our relationship will be different, but love will be amongst everyone!

Last Full Chemo January 29, 2020

Well, today we had pump down. The pump finished at 10:24 a.m.,  and we arrived at the cancer center at 10:30 a.m. my husband is looking forward to the end of having to bring home a pump of chemo meds hooked up to him for 46 hours after the all day chemo treatment on Monday. He would get hooked up to the pump to take home after being  administered chemo drugs every other Monday since August, 2019. So he said goodbye to his "little buddy" today.

January 4, 2020

Wow.  What a whirlwind we've been in.  Seems like it was just July when I took my husband to the ER with extreme pain in his abdomen area. Then the surgery, the diagnosis of the big C, Cancer, and the discussion of treatment with the Oncologist, the last treatment seemed a long way off, and now he only has two treatments left.  We know not what the future holds, but we thank God for all his blessings and for helping us to make the journey this far. 

Recently, I posted a picture of my 65 year old self to social media, and a sweet friend commented that i was an inspiration to all women.  The gist of the post began "Here's to a new decade", then proceeded to say "I've hated this woman...,Actually, I've not loved her at all most of her life."  It goes on about how she'd never thought herself good enough, at times she was broken, treated disrespectfully, battled for those who won't even stand by and for her, etc., etc., etc. She was abandoned, paralyzed by fear, fought battles in her mind, heart and soul, and had many scars because of her history. She couldn't understand how some people loved her regardless, some people liked her and some just didn't care for her at all, including herself.  But, now she is beginning to love herself, every mistake, every failure, trial, disappointment and success.

With that said, bring on the new decade.  One thing life has taught me, while going through life itself, is that LIFE itself, is very fragile. Through many of my decades, I've had to deal with illness and death. My grandmother, Victoria, whom I was very close to, died of kidney failure at the age of 88.  She lived what I would call a very hard life, but she always had faith and love in her heart. My father was electrocuted, and survived, had bleeding ulcers and survived, had St. Louis strain of Encephalitis and survived until he encountered Pneumonia while recovering from the Encephalitis.  My father died at the age of 42.  My mother had 3/4 of her Thyroid removed, and survived, had a quadruple bypass on her heart, and survived, became paralyzed from a stroke suffered in her back, and survived. She then had to undergo kidney dialysis because of renal failure and survived until she encountered lung cancer, which no one knew she had.  My mother died at the age of 69. My husband at the age of 67 was diagnosed with cancer and I will soon call him a Survivor.  So here's to a new decade...may we all be Survivors and learn to love ourselves so others may love us too. May we all be an inspiration to others, because life is short, and fragile, so be kind.

2019 Ramblings

2019...end of the year ramblings!
This has been such a tough year. I hope against all odds, that 2020 will bring a better world for everyone. 2019 was not a good year, even though I had such great expectations after having just retired. The theft of my vases, stolen off my porch at 3AM during a bad storm, still bothers me, as they were sentimental as some of the last things I bought that my mother loved before she passed away. And the fact that someone invaded my security.
Then a few months later, I had to take my husband to the ER where he was diagnosed with cancer and needed an immediate operation to save his life, and then he had to have his stomach pumped out due to Ilius. As if that wasn't enough, his lung collapsed when the port was being put in his chest. He spent 13 days in the hospital and then he had to start undergoing chemo treatments and dealing with side effects, then recently had a cystascope and treatment for a hernia and horrible reflux, and I know I'm rambling without a break, but that's how this year has been...Rambling endlessly, on, and on, and on. And I want to take away his pain, and fix him and I can't! However, I am thankful to God, that he is still with us, and seems to be recovering.
So my wish for the new year is that we all be blessed with peace, and love, and happiness, and prosperity, and a lot more luck than we've had this year.
I know, I know, it looks unobtainable right now...this world is crazy, but God will help us get through it all. I have to believe! Love to you all. Thanks for being in our lives and helping us through this year. Your thoughts and prayers have helped.💙✝️❤

UNREAL!    April 2, 2012

Okay, seems all I do is work, work, work.  It's getting really depressing, especially when I do work for people that don't want to pay their bill, and I'm left holding the bag.  I do have bills to pay too, and I do need to replace things that break.  I do not have an unlimited funds account,  I have to struggle just like everyone else, and for some people to think that their struggles are worse than mine, well, that may be what you think, but my whole life has been a struggle and its still a struggle.  I can't even pay my medical bills as I need to, either, and at my age, that's not a good thing.  I'm just blowing off steam because I don't like being taken advantage of, and if you're reading this and think its about you....its not! It's not about any particular person, it's not about YOU! It's about frustration, about trusting people to do the right thing, and they don't; it's about taking people for granted; it's about putting your faith and trust that people will do the right thing, and they just let you down;  it's about me knowing better, but trusting them and allowing it anyway!  It's about the world of the  "Me" generation, and how it affects everyone else, but no one sees it because they are too busy thinking of themselves.  It's not about "Me"; it's not about "You"; WHY can't people just think first, and do the right thing!  Guess I'm still an idealist, because I still believe that tomorrow when I wake up, everything will be good and people will see the light, even when I know they don't care.  Because all that's important to them, is THEM!

March 27, 2012

Hello.  So, my family and I are walking in Lafayette this weekend at the Family Fun Day - Walk for Hope to raise Autism awareness.  This is our 3rd year, and true to form, I didn't train this year.  I did train last year, but not the year before and not this year.  Looks like a pattern to me.  Train every other year, yeah right.  So I started walking around the neighborhood this week just in case.  Walked 10 blocks yesterday and only 7 blocks today.  I guess I'm thinking every little bit helps.  At my age, let's hope so.  I did feel so much better coming down the stairs at work today; even had a little pep in my step.  So maybe it is helping. Who knows? I hope so. As I'm writing this, I'm sitting watching "The Voice" which we recorded on DVR last night.  My thought for the night is...."What's up with Christina's hat?" Hard, round disc with bling?... Hmmm.......