Journeys of a Lifetime

...As many of you know, my mantra for the past ten years has been "Journey On." After all, we're all on a journey of one kind or another -- some long, some short, some easy, some challenging. So here I am in Los Angeles again -- my third journey to see my beloved USC continue their bid for the National Championship. At the same time, however, I find myself on another -- far more challenging -- journey, which is why you haven't heard much from me this Fall.

My Greek college roommate -- Angela -- whom I mentioned frequently on my journey to Greece, is extremely ill -- Stage IV breast cancer that recently metastasized to the brain. I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to spend a lot of time with her in September and October, moments that I will treasure for a lifetime. Now she's at St. Joseph's Hospital -- floating in and out of consciousness. Again, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to just sit with her and hold her hand for several hours for the past three days and she continues on her journey. As I told my daughter: there was a reason I bought these season tickets....

Today I'm going to Catalina for a couple of days -- nothing I can do here and I'm only a phone call away. I plan to reconnect with you all as I continue my parallel journeys here in Southern California. I'll focus on the usual things and let you know how Angela's journey progresses.

Take care,

Betsy