April ... impending deadlines ... stressors on several levels ... WHAT am I going to write about? I realized I started having anxiety about WHAT I'd write about ... and then it hit me! As I was driving through Bastrop on my way to set up camp at Sherwood this past weekend, there ... right there in the median was a big, beautiful, lush patch of bluebonnets, or “Smurfs” as was coined by our beloved Jason. I'll admit that unexpected emotion overcame me at the sight of them ... there were more and more of them scattered along the highway. A few tears rolled down my face as I drove on in solitude towards the campground. What came next was also unexpected ... this happening caused me to take pause and realize a couple of really important things that I'd been overlooking ...

One, I am blessed ... I am blessed with life, the opportunity to wake up each day and begin anew just like those little Smurfs do every year; and, I shouldn't take that for granted for a minute. Two, I am blessed to be surrounded by an amazing family support system who help hold me up when I waver. Just like those little Smurfs are surrounded by each other in their patches, helping to hold one another up during gusting winds and rain. Three, I am blessed to have my critical needs met ... food, water, clothing and shelter ... just like those little Smurfs receive all they need from our Lord ... plus the promise of renewal every spring.

I may have stress ... we all do. I may have worries ... ain't gonna lie, we each do. I may feel as though I need or want more, but the truth is, I have all I need. So, thank you Jason for riding along with me to Sherwood, for giving me a nudge and showing me that through your pictorial journey of hunting Smurfs I was able to redirect and get back on track. Who knew that Jason's fascination with bluebonnets would mean something like that to me at this point in my life? What might it mean to others ... we'll never know. Though he didn't mean it to be something weighty or of significant importance to anyone, Jason's quest for the elusive Smurfs has become just that for me. I will never face another sighting of our Texas Bluebonnets in the same way again. I will always be reminded that, even in his passing, Jason has reminded me how and why to be grateful for life and living.

April, being the month of his passing, I'd like to challenge each of you to reflect on revitalization and renewal ... and to think of Jason out tromping through the fields, camera and gear slung across his back, searching for those elusive little Smurfs and the joy and happiness that he had in doing so.

Go out and live life... with no regrets!

Blessings and love,
Juli / Nonni