44 Big Ones

I turned 44 today. I started my first blog almost exactly a year ago--two days after my 43rd birthday. Seems like a long time and no time at all--completely the same and completely different.
There must be some kind of Zen teaching in that.
But anyway, at that time I didn't know how significant my next birthday would be. In another life, my 44th birthday might have made me feel old. In this life, I feel grateful, grateful for the people I love, friends and family, for my dog, for the opportunity to live and learn, to continue trying to discover What It All Means and How Some of It Works, for the life I've had thus far and for whatever is yet to come, for the teachers, known and unknown, formal and (mostly) informal, who have illuminated my path and/or demonstrated the courage and strength I try to maintain in myself.
I think I'll celebrate all of that and all of us after I get off graveyard shift. Until then--ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.
By the way, at my last appointment with my oncologist, Dr. Lopez (the new one), after some tense waiting that was rather reminiscent of my recent bone and CT scans, I found out the marker was down to 127. 127!!!!!!
Oh. Yeah.
Thanks for all the birthday wishes. Happy Birthday to Me! Now I gotta get ready for work.