“In every conceivable manner, the family is link to our past, bridge to our future.”
Alex Hale

These are a few of the pictures from my visit my mom and Bob. They were here from last Thursday until yesterday. We had a great visit. We went to Fort Young, a very nice restaurant in Roseau. On Saturday, I took them on a tour of the entire island, which I think they really enjoyed. Mom was able to buy some baskets made in the Carib territory. On Sunday, though, they, well Bob did the mashed potatoes, made me and some of my friends an early Thanksgiving dinner. We had turkey, dressing, gravy, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, rolls, sweetened carrots, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie......IT WAS SO DELICIOUS..... especially since next week, the real Thanksgiving, I have my Behavioral Oral Exam.....

Anyways, I just wanted to share a bit with everyone. I will tell you more about their visit in my next post, after they send me some pics. I love everyone and hope you are having a good week.

“Other things may change us, but we start and end with family”
Anthony Brandt

These are pictures that my aunt Pam sent me from this past weekend at the Morris family "holiday" get-to-together. The one picture is of the entire family, obviously. One is of my mom and her two sisters, Pam in the black and white, and Addie. One is of JT, Gretchen, Mom, and Bob. The last one is of my cousin McKensie and her boyfriend Brett. I thought the pictures were good and I really enjoyed them. There were some more but too many can be distracting and time consuming to upload....

My mom and Bob are flying into Dominica to visit me today. They land at 4:45 at Melville Hall....the booming airport of Dominica (yeah right!) kidding.... I am taking them to Tomatos tonight. Some of my friends are going to stop by there to meet them. Tomorrow night we are going to Fort Young in Roseau.....Saturday we are going on an island tour. Sunday, though, is the best....MOM IS COOKING THANKSGIVING FOR US! We are all very excited, as you may imagine. Potatos, corn, green beans,......Trust me, we are all very excited, especially me. I will take plenty of pictures so that everyone can enjoy them.

I hope everyone is having a good week! ~nat

"The noble causes of life have always seemed foolish to the uninspired. But this is of small concern. I worry less about the crucified than those who pounded the nails." The Letter by Richard Paul Evans

"I am not judged by the number of times I fail, but by the number of times I succeed: and the number of times I succeed is in direct proportion to the number of times I fail and keep trying.”Tom Hopkins

These are pictures are some of the ones JT took this weekend. If you are from my mom's family, don't be jealous. He did not take any pictures at the family function because he said everyone else did a good job....Therefore, you guys need to send me some pictures. It was good to see the Morris family on webcam this weekend. My aunt Pam and I discussed it and my uncle David bought the webcam. I was so excited and appreciative. It made my day because I had not seen many of those people in 2+ years. It was nice to see them.

I took my exam yesterday.....I will know how it went soon enough. Lets "cross our fingers". I studied hard so hopefully some that paid off. I am just ready to get this week going, which it is, because I am sitting in pathology class. Obviously its very exciting; I am updating my blog....

Have a good week! Love you guys!

“You can't undo anything you've already done, but you can face up to it. You can tell the truth. You can seek forgiveness. And then let God do the rest.”

I have an exam tomorrow. Just wanted to share this. I really want everyone to have a fabulous week. We only get one life; might as well enjoy it.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us most. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and famous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in all of us. And when we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”Used by Nelson Mandela in his 1994 inaugural speech~Maryanne Williamson

"Hope is a rare gift that, if we are lucky, comes to us with the power to heal our lives. I've come to know that the deepest sense of hope often springs from the hardest lessons in life. It is in the darkest skies that stars are best seen---perhaps it is divine irony that within the darkest moments we are capable of revealing the greatest light, demonstrating what is best with humanity." Richard Paul Evans, The Timepiece

I realize the truth that the statement above holds.....That in the darkest skies, the brightest stars can be seen. But what about those moments when you don't feel like a star.....when you have hurt and disppointed so many people around you for so many different reasons. Yes, the sky is dark but I don't feel like a bright star. However, I do realize that this is where hope comes in. Though hard to see, hope is just on the edge of the horizon within a fingers reach. And I have come to realize that pain you endure at the hands of others is just a tiny morsel when compared to the pain we cause to others, regardless of the source or reason or lack thereof. I know my words do not make much sense to most of you. However, please pray. Pray for me and my pain and my world and all those who are in it and those that I have hurt along the way. And if you are not a person who prays, well, I dont know. Right now, prayer is all that I have. Thank you to those of you for loving me despite myself, when I don't deserve it or did not deserve or lost it and you gave it back. Thank you.... I am sorry to those of you I have hurt or ever let down in any way. Please know that I care about each and every person in my life and never seek to hurt anyone intentionally. I love you all. These are my ramblings, I apologize. I hope everyone has a great weekend.

"Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble. "

- William Shakespeare (This quote is for those of you that like Shakespeare, like Macbeth, can appreciate either, or just like Halloween)

In the picture, you can see Stella the Crustacean.... Doesn't she make a cute lobster? I wanted to put a picture for Halloween so here you go. They don't really celebrate Halloween here, which is disappointing because it is one of those American holidays that remind you of your childhood. Rather we are discussing colonoscopies in pathology class. It is a shame that we have 5 hours of class and a test in 6 days because Halloween would have been fun. Halloween is Zuby's favorite holiday so being here today makes her a bit sad. I hope everyone has a good day and enjoys today. Trick or Treat for us! Gretchen, I wonder if Dr. Oliver still gives the big candy bars to kids he likes rather than the small snack size.....what do you think?

What was your favorite costume? I remember one year being a cow with utters and the grim reeper another year. The cutest was when Gretchen and I were matching pumpkins. I am sure my mom and dad remember all of our costumes. I have an idea, why don't those of you who want to, leave a comment and tell me your favorite costume, the favorite costume you put on your kid, or what costumes your kids are wearing this year....I would really like that. Moreover, send me Halloween pictures! I hope you all have a great Holiday. Love everyone....

~nat

Most people don't know there are angels whose only job is to make sure you don't get too comfortable & fall asleep & miss your life. ~www.storypeople.com

These are some random picture. The first if of me and my friend Christy Stewart. The second picture is of Stella enjoying her first birthday cake. (A picture I got from her other Aunt Nat, not her mom). The last picture is of JT's friends, Matt and Carey Heid, and their children Emily, Ethan, and Ellie. The little one is actually in a purple glitter cast because she broke her leg.

I had community clinic today where we went into the local community and interfered patients. It was quite interesting.

I hope you all are having a good week! Let know how things are going.

~nat

“Success means having the courage, the determination, and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be” George Sheehan

Today is JT's six month anniversary of his surgery. I thought the pictures above were a good illustration of how far he has come....And even looks different now than he did in the pink shirt....well at least according to pictures because I do not see him regularly. I am so proud of his progess that is still going on. I am jealous of those of you who get to see him. I hope you enjoy these pictures.. There are so many more.... I am very proud of him!

HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY, STELLA!

Today is Stella's birthday. All of the these pictures are ones I have collected over the last year. She is such a pretty little thing. It seems like yesterday I was calling to ask Emily how the labor was going, and she laughed saying she had just had a c-section and little Stella was laying next to her. It really is amazing how fast time goes. I guess it seems even faster when they are actually your kids.....

I just wanted to say hello. Things are going well. We are just studying and preparing for our next exam, which is Monday, November 6th. I am also trying to prepare my anatomy students because they have a practical one week from today. It is hard sometimes to juggle both but it is a lot of fun. I did a GastroIntestinal Tract review last night of x-rays, the posterior abdominal wall, and GI tract taken out of the body. I know that grosses most of you out..Sorry.

Have a good weekend and HAPPY BIRTHDAY STELLA!