Elvis - A Lighted Candle

[MaryInTheMorning]

You are very welcome dear Trish, and I in turn thank you for your wonderful and caring reply also!! No apologies necessary sweet friend for not having had a chance to get into Chapel of Love yet and read my story hon. It ain't goin' anywhere so please feel free to read it whenever you get a chance. Trust me, I can MORE than relate to having a crazy house!! Oh my gosh Trish!! My eyes did the same thing that yours did when I just read that you lost your mother to ovarian cancer also. Your mother's illness doesn't necessarily mean that it will definitely affect you, so please try not to worry dear angel. It makes me just as happy to know that you are an informed patient too!! Yes, we are definitely pains in the neck at the doctor's office, but like you said it is sadly a necessary survival skill these days so most definitely.......a toast to us!!! Thank you so much for your loving thoughts about my daughter's autism. Yes, it can be VERY stressful and difficult alot of the time, but at the same time my precious little one reminds me of our own dear Elvis in that she centers from a place of GENUINE LOVE FOR ALL!! She shows such genuine love, warmth, caring and affection for any and every person she comes across!! However, she has also gotten very hurt by people(strangers) sometimes when she attempts to be kind or talk to them because I guess sadly nowadays people don't appreciate being bothered, even by a well intended child, and she has been treated like she's some sort of weirdo or something. Yet, even being treated like that, she still treats those people in the same loving fashion. Sweet Trish, you said mothers like myself are your heroes and my heart overflows with love and gratitude for you for saying that!! My little girl is my hero for all that she has gone and will continue to go through because she always goes through it with LOVE!! :D My doctor's mismanagement of my case made me really angry too!!! Even though like you said, you try your hardest to be forgiving and muster up some compassion for complacent doctors and the humans in the "establishment", when someone is messing around with your very life it's really hard ya know?? It does indeed depend on the mood I'm in much like yourself---touch and go like you said!! Your friend Marie does indeed sound like a great role model for you and I am so honored that you would compare me to someone as strong as she is and may God bless her for all that she has been through!! I have no doubt whatsoever that God forbid if you should ever be diagnosed with anything like I have been dealing with, you will most definitely whip it like Marie did because of your own beautiful, positive and upbeat attitude!!! That's a BIG part of it believe me!! It does my heart so much good to know that all of you, along with our dear Elvis are holding my hand along my journey!! I am so happy to be a part of ELC and I'm really glad that you are too dear lady!! You are right in that it definitely IS the best forum ever and I too so enjoy talking with you dear friend, especially in light of our common legacy with our mothers, as well as our many shared interests and concerns!!! I send many hugs and much love right back to you my angel!!

Trish since you said you couldn't picture me in your mind since you don't know what I look like, here ya go hon!!

Mari/"Marie"

[Golden Sky]

when someone is messing around with your very life it's really hard ya know??

Yes, I can imagine this quite well. And I think sometimes forgiveness is overrated What I mean to say is, I think there's a limit to how much love the regular person can be expected to have for people who harm them. When Ghandi was shot, he turned to his assassin and raised his arms in a gesture that means, "Greetings!" right before he died. But even Jesus wasn't that sweet to the people bringing him down. We don't read about Jesus saying warm things about Judas after the fact, do we?? So I think we can be good people, mentally healthy and bright people, and still hold some little grudges. Maybe I'm wrong but that's how I think.

Your daughter sounds like an absolute sweetheart and angel. You warmed my heart talking about her. The world definitely needs more people like her, who will shower love on people regardless of whether they can "receive" it in the moment or not. Your daughter reminds me of a quote from the book Lost Horizon: "Her beauty, like all beauty in the world, is at the mercy of those who don't know how to appreciate it." But she seems unsinkable anyway! I really do smile to imagine her loving, accepting nature.

Now, please accept my condolences for having your husband away from you for a whole week! If you're anything like me, that can get very lonely. I LIKE being alone, I thoroughly enjoy my private time, but when my husband and I are away from each other for days on end, I get all disoriented and my heart aches. I'm so used to having him around!

I've been reading your story in the Chapel of Love section as time permits and it's so incredibly touching. Thank you so much for sharing your journey with us and for allowing your friends to lavish you with soothing words and advice. It's all a shining testament to the good in people. And obviously I hope your story, your path to healing, becomes an education in happiness, miracles, and love all around.

Last...a minor point ... is your name pronounced "Marie"? I've been saying "Mary" in my head all this time! What a coincidence if you, too, are a "Marie." For that matter, you know, so am I...it's my middle name

Always beautiful talking to you and being your friend!

Love,
Trish

[Rainbow Light]

Beautiful to read your posts above, dear ladies and to be honored and proud to know you both as good friends through the love of Elvis!!

Mari, little Ashley is an angel on Earth too and sorry she's had some tough experiences in life in approaching other people! My heart goes out to Ashley, however, and my love and best wishes to her!

in the name of Peace,

Sue

[MaryInTheMorning]

..... I think there's a limit to how much love the regular person can be expected to have for people who harm them.
........... I think we can be good people, mentally healthy and bright people, and still hold some little grudges. Maybe I'm wrong but that's how I think.

I tend to agree with you about the first point you made dear Trish as far as how much love the regular person can be expected to have for people who harm them. This very good point you made is one of the MANY reasons that Elvis was such an amazing human being to me!!! It seemed that no matter how much harm people may have caused him, he never stopped loving even at times when he should have at the very least stopped liking !! I mean, I don't really know many other people that could go through or put up with even a small percentage of what he did and still maintain such sincere loving feelings the way he did. Then again, we're speaking of what "regular people" would or are most likely capable of and we all know that Elvis was not just a "regular person" in the way that he treated his fellow man which is one of the MANY reasons that he was and still is so special and loved so much!!! Which leads into the 2nd point you made that I agree with too. Being a good person, mentally healthy and bright and still hold some little grudges---sounds like an okay combination to me too my sweet friend!!!

Thank you so very much for all of the beautiful and loving things you said about my little girl. Especially in saying that the world needs more people like her. Is it okay if I said I agreed with you? Thank you so much for sharing that beautiful quote from the Lost Horizon book and saying that it reminds you of Ashley. Reading that brought such a smile to my heart!! She reminds me so much of our dear Elvis in the way that she is so trusting and innocent with the love that she gives and shares so freely with everyone not realizing or even thinking about the possibility of her being hurt because of it. She truly amazes me and I am really proud to be her Mom!!! I'm so sorry everyone for going on like this about her, but she's just a wonderful little girl.

Thank you so much for your condolences about my husband being gone. It seems that we have quite a bit in common dear angel because it does get very lonely without him as I am so used to having him around too. Like you, I like my private time, but ache in my heart when he's gone. He did however get home this past Friday and we all enjoyed a nice family weekend together!!

Thank you so much hon for all of the sweet and loving this you said about my story in the Chapel of Love and you are very welcome for my sharing it!!! It helped me out ENORMOUSLY knowing that I could share it with all of you my dear angels!!! The soothing words, love, prayers and advice that I have received from all of you will be forever cherished in my heart!!!

As for your minor point no worries as you have indeed been pronouncing my name correctly dear friend. It is pronounced Mary, as in the song title "Mary in the Morning." The reason that I put Marie up there next to my name was because of the reference that you had made in your previous post about me being like your friend Marie in terms of my illness that I've been dealing with. I am so sorry if I caused any confusion or took the reference about Marie and myself out of context in any way sweet angel. As always it is beautiful and wonderful talking to you and being your friend too!!!

Sue my dear and sweet friend, my heart thanks you so much for the loving and kind thoughts about my little Ashley!!! It truly lights my soul to call both of you ladies and all of my other angels here at ELC my friends!!!!

[Golden Sky]

Dear Mari-pronounced-Mary ,

Thank you for these long, smile-filled messages! You always put a smile on my face. It's been so wonderful talking with you and learning about your extraordinary daughter. I'm so happy your husband is home! Hopefully you all had a nice reunion this weekend

Thanks also for your thoughts about forgiveness. It's a topic that's been on my mind a lot lately (specifically, I have a difficult relationship with my sister and have wondered what I can do to "rise above" our bad chemistry ). But that's a WHOLE other topic....

I did get to read your whole story in Chapel of Love and left a note for you there. You seem so vibrant and healthy now, I hope it lasts and lasts!

Sue, it's always great to read your posts, too! Thanks for being here with us.

Much love,
Trish

[Golden Sky]

Elvis was such an amazing human being to me!!! It seemed that no matter how much harm people may have caused him, he never stopped loving even at times when he should have at the very least stopped liking !!

Mari, I forgot to thank you for all these wonderful observations you made about our friend Elvis.

I see what you see in him- I know what you mean! :D:D

[MaryInTheMorning]

You are very welcome for the messages and the smilies, and I'm so glad that they make you smile my dear friend. I am so very sorry that they wind up being so long though. I don't mean to do that, really. It's just that when I feel passionate about something that I'm talking about, or find someone that I really enjoy talking to(like you my dear friend ) I just kind of ramble on I guess. I think that if I would have ever been blessed enough to have a conversation with Elvis, it would have possibly been a very chatty one at times with both of us trying to get a word in edge-wise. Anyhow, before this gets too much longer you are also more than welcome for my thoughts about forgiveness sweet angel. It has been on my mind alot too lately due to the on-going situation with my friend that I've mentioned before. I am sorry to hear about the difficulties you are having with you sister and I will pray that things will get better for the two of you. Thanks also for your warm wishes about my story in Chapel of Love. I guess I'm as healthy as I can be considering the situation, and I hope that things will continue to improve for me. With the love and help of our Lord, beautiful friends like yourself and hopefully our dear Elvis on my side, I just try and keep a positive attitude as much as I can. Speaking of our dear friend, you are very welcome for my observations about him!! They're really so very easy to see aren't they??

[Golden Sky]

I think that if I would have ever been blessed enough to have a conversation with Elvis, it would have possibly been a very chatty one at times with both of us trying to get a word in edge-wise.

I really meant it when I thanked you for the length, Mari! For several reasons: 1) your writing is interesting to read, shows diligence and caring, and makes me smile 2) I write REEEEAAALLLLLLYYYY long messages myself sometimes! (It would be quite chatty between me and Elvis too, although when we "meet" in my dreams I'm struck quiet with reverence ) and 3) we just seem to have a lot in common. So write all you like!
I'm listening!!!

And I'm so happy that you are at a healthy (ish) stage in your road to recovery. Keep up the good work!

Hope you and your friend can move past your troubles, too. I've been quarreling with my sister my entire life but we have our shining moments. At the very least, I wish you the same!

Much love,
Trish

[MaryInTheMorning]

Thank you so much dear Trish for saying you really do enjoy my writing and the things I post even if they get a little lengthy!! I think we have alot in common too and I always enjoy talking to you too sweet angel. Glad to know that you are here to listen, and please know that I will always be here to listen to you too so please feel free to write some REEEEAAALLLLL YYY long messages yourself any time you like!!

I too am happy that I am slowly getting to a healthy(ish) stage in my recovery and hope that it will only get better from here. Thank youa lso for the good wishes about me and my friend. Like you and your sister, we have our shining moments too and I try to concentrate on those in the hopes that those times will outshine the others that aren't quite as good.

[Golden Sky]

Glad to know that you are here to listen, and please know that I will always be here to listen to you too so please feel free to write some REEEEAAALLLLL YYY long messages yourself any time you like!!

Thank you, Mari. Trust me, I'll be taking you up on that offer one of these days!

So happy to hear you are feeling healthy (ish). I think a lot of time if people can just get a "foothold" on health, they can lift up. And maybe the same is sort of true about relationships...although my sister and I are just so incredibly different I think the best thing for us is to be on opposite sides of the country (as indeed we are) and have "pleasant small talk" as our main goal in communication

Anyway, it's a beautiful day here in PA, and I hope it's the same for you in Chicago. And I hope that you are happy. How could you not be...you're logged onto the ELC forum even as we speak!

Always wonderful talking with you~
Love,
Trish

[MaryInTheMorning]

Thank you, Mari. Trust me, I'll be taking you up on that offer one of these days! :lol:

You are very welcome dear angel and please do feel free to take me up on that offer anytime!! :wink: I agree with what you said about if people are able to get a "foothold" on things like health or relationships that they can lift up or improve. The thing is sometimes it's really hard to get a hold of that darn foot ya know?? However, just keep trying is my motto! Either you'll get a hold of the foot or fall down on your backside tryin'!! In terms of what you said about your relationship with your sister, sometimes it is better to maintain that "polite distance" that way you can as you said, still have some kind of a plesant relationship. So glad it's a beautiful day in PA. for you hon! Unfortunately, it's another "cold and gray Chicago morning"(song cue ) here for us. However, weather aside, I am happy because I am logged into ELC and always feel the joy of our dear Elvis whenever I'm here!!!

Hope you are having a good day and are happy too!! :wink: It is always so wonderful and heart-warming to talk to you too!! :D

[Rainbow Light]

Love reading all your beautiful, heartwarming and uplifting posts as above, dear ladies!!

tend to agree with you about the first point you made dear Trish as far as how much love the regular person can be expected to have for people who harm them. This very good point you made is one of the MANY reasons that Elvis was such an amazing human being to me!!! It seemed that no matter how much harm people may have caused him, he never stopped loving even at times when he should have at the very least stopped liking !! I mean, I don't really know many other people that could go through or put up with even a small percentage of what he did and still maintain such sincere loving feelings the way he did. Then again, we're speaking of what "regular people" would or are most likely capable of and we all know that Elvis was not just a "regular person" in the way that he treated his fellow man which is one of the MANY reasons that he was and still is so special and loved so much!!!

AMEN and then some, Mari!! Elvis was such a sweet, humble and all round good guy with a beautiful big ole heart and trusting, loving spirit! Despite so much harm done him, he never seemed to 'run out of cheeks' to turn for the most part and the way he treated people in general in life surely IS one of the MANY reasons he was and still is so special and loved so much!

[FairyTale]

Yeah Mari you should be down here in Virginia with me, its nice and Sunny and Warm. After I read what you said here RainBowLight, it came to me that just how very much this World could Learn from Elvis in the Way he like you said it seems he never ran out of Cheeks to Turn. That even though he was Used and Abused, and Put down Lower then Dirt. He still Forgave, and he still put out is Hand in FreindShip and Help! FairyTale!

[Rainbow Light]

After I read what you said here RainBowLight, it came to me that just how very much this World could Learn from Elvis in the Way he like you said it seems he never ran out of Cheeks to Turn. That even though he was Used and Abused, and Put down Lower then Dirt. He still Forgave, and he still put out is Hand in FreindShip and Help! FairyTale!
_________________

AMEN!!!

[Golden Sky]

Thank you, Mari. Trust me, I'll be taking you up on that offer one of these days! :lol:

You are very welcome dear angel and please do feel free to take me up on that offer anytime!! :wink:

I certainly will, Mari! I haven't been on the forum much lately, so you know I'm just storing up more and more things to say when I have time!!! You made me laugh with your "song cue" for In the Ghetto...thanks And thanks also for sharing your thoughts about getting those darn footholds

Fairytale and Sue, always a pleasure reading your contributions, too. It does seem that Elvis never stopped turning his other cheek. Bless his beautiful heart.

Love to all,
Trish