While there's still time...

A few years ago my sister and I sat on her little deck at her home near St. Louis enjoying the backyard filled with flowers and scores of hummingbirds darting between her many feeders. We sipped ice tea, and talked about old times, hard times and good times as the scorching July sun would finally give way to the night.

One evening she took a deep drag off of her cigarette, exhaled, looked me straight in the eye and proceeded to tell me that I had gained too much weight and that I needed to start taking better care of myself.

Her blunt comment wasn't meant to be hurtful.

I couldn't disagree with her assessment of the health risks I was creating for myself. She was right of course.  I was on medicine for high blood pressure and high cholesterol, I was borderline diabetic and my knees were protesting from the extra weight.

But it's pretty hard to take health advise from someone with a cigarette in one hand and a recent diagnosis of terminal lung cancer in the other.

My sister died a few months after that visit.  It was too late for her to make changes that would extend or improve the quality of her life here on earth.

But wasn't too late for me.

I am not wasting any more time stuck in a rut of discouragement, defeat, guilt and embarrassment.  By the power of the Holy Spirit I am learning to turn to God, not food, when I'm lonely, bored, discouraged or stressed.  I am learning that I'm made to consume food, food is not supposed to consume me.

Me and my 'big' sister, Dorothy.
Taken a few months before she died from lung cancer.