Kenny Landes | Graphic Design | Web Development | San Francisco

This year will be my first White Christmas since 1984, just before I moved to California. This time I have the luxury of a California White Christmas with my partner, Jim.

We left San Francisco this morning, crossed the Bay Bridge and headed across the state to South Lake Tahoe, just a few miles from the Nevada State Line. We traveled through San Francisco, the East Bay, the Sacramento Delta, the Central Valley, Gold Country into the Sierra Nevada mountains cresting at over 7000 feet before descending into the Tahoe Basin. Thanks to this last week’s snows, it is a winter wonderland.

We are staying at the Black Bear Inn just a half mile from the lake with an amazing view in every direction. Life is good.

Have a very Merry Christmas!

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A few years ago, my brother died after an illness of about 6-months duration. This week I nearly lost my mom. I can’t say that one is preferable. The pain involved in seeing a loved one suffer is simply unparalleled and difficult to bear.

A certain clarity comes with these things, though. Things that seemed important to me last week seem less so now. Conversely, things I took for granted last week, I now hold more precious.

My mom remains in the hospital, in the ICU, but has improved to the point that she will soon move out of the ICU into a regular room to being recovering from a very serious, life-threatening medical emergency. It’s going to be a while before she is back to normal, but her prognosis is good.

We have much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving, and every single day.

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I missed an important telephone call—7 calls actually—over night Friday night before finally being reached by my sister who informed me that my mom had been admitted to the hospital ICU. It’s a jarring kind of thing to hear, something that quickly placed into perspective all the other life problems that I had taken inventory of the night before.

So I got the first plane down to San Diego to go and be with my family, to offer my support and to simply be present during a time when being present seems dismally insufficient.

I sit here now at the end of a very long day, preparing to go to sleep for a few hours not knowing what tomorrow brings, but trusting that God will give me what ever I need in order to get through it. At moments like this, it is all one has, and it is all one needs.

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