.278 | to my parents, from Ellen

In giving this a lot of thought I can't just narrow it down to a single person. There are too many people who have given me pearls of wisdom along the way that have truly influenced my life. One of these pearls came from my Dad and I thank him every day for this and share it with my own family .... he always said "life is a series of compromises".... how right he was! I carry those words with me always. Another person that I will be eternally grateful to is my Mom....after my first husband died and I was a ripe 34 years old my Mom sat me down, after the shock wore off, and said to me "You can't change what has happened but you are in control of what will be, don't sit around feeling sorry for yourself live your life!" I credit those words to my happiness now....being married to my amazing husband, who if I had not listened to her, would never have been in my life for the past 35 years. So yes, I am thanking my parents who I miss every day.