Linens 'n Things . . .

I promised to post more pictures from my day trip to my favorite Cape May antique shop but first there are a few things that I have on my mind this morning.

There are many blogs that I follow on a semi-regular basis and then there are blogs that I read every day. One of those blogs is written by Stephanie Clark-Nielson. It is called Nie Nie Dialogues and can be found here. Stephanie and her husband and their friend/flight instructor were in a very bad plane crash a year ago. Their beloved friend was tragically killed and Stephanie and her husband were badly burned. Stephanie or "Nie Nie" was in a medically induced coma for months with burns over most of her body. Her husband, once able to, sat by her side day after day. Their four young children were taken care of by their incredible families. The love and support of people all over the world has carried them thru this tragedy and continues to do so every day.

Nie Nie posted a picture of herself yesterday, on her blog, for the first time since the accident. I can't imagine the courage it must've taken for her to do so. Her face is very different then it was before but her incredible beauty shines thru like a beacon of light. Her eyes are truly the mirror to her soul and are filled with so much love as she looks up at her husband. It is so incredible to me what mere mortals like us all can endure. What doesn't kill us truly makes us stronger. Nie Nie, her husband and their families have such a strong faith in their God.

I have never met these families but my life has truly been touched and affected by what they've endured this last year. My family has been thru a lot this last year as well. My sister was diagnosed with advanced cancer last April. She has two very young children. It is my belief that we either come from a place of fear or we come from a place of love and for a long time many people that were touched by my sister's illness were operating from a place of fear. I am happy to say that she is doing incredibly well and love has slowly taken the place of fear. It will be one day at a time for her for the rest of her life but God has been so good to her and, for that, I am truly grateful. For Nie Nie and Mr. Nielson's four young children to have both of their parents to hold onto, I am truly grateful. For family and friends to share their love and strength during the most difficult of times, I am truly grateful. Thank you, Nie Nie, for sharing your life's journey with us. God has big plans for you and I feel so blessed that I get to "peek" in on you and see them as they unfold.

I think I will wait until tomorrow to post about the linens. Somehow, the "things" seemed a bit more important to me today.

Many blessings ~ Wendy