I got a hug in the mail

I received the loveliest letter from Cousin Rose. Very thoughtful and heartfelt. Of course I'm "a nervous wreck" these days! I'm faced with losing my job! But now, Rose counsels, is a time for faith and positive thinking. She reminds me that God knows what's best, not us,* and shared this quote:

"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us."

That Joseph Campbell quote is at the beginning of Dan Brown's Origin, which she just picked up after receiving my letter about St. Louis. Coincidence? Maybe. But she thought it was an important quote to share with me, right now.

She believes this all might be a nice challenge for me, a way to shake me up and introduce me to things outside my comfort zone. She reminded me of all the ways her life was turned upside when her husband left her, of how her original plans for retirement had to be revised when her company reorganized. She knows I'll be blessed with right help at the right time.

This letter was Rose at her best. She has loved me forever and has always, always been there for me. She can be inflexible and judgemental. I think impatience with life is a result of her very painful divorce.

But she has been a generous constant in my life for as long as I can remember. Since my mother's death, Rosie is the one who has known and loved me the longest. Eleven years my senior, she looked out for me and was my lifeline when I was a disenfranchised, misunderstood teen. She seems willing to be my sherpa as I navigate the shoals of this life change.

Rose has always had my back. The older I get, the more I treasure that history.

*Something she realizes I believe, but must be reminded of!