Thank You!!!!

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a nice holiday! Now that 2008 is coming to an end, it is a good time for us all to look back and reflect on the last year. Personally, I had an eventful year.

I spent the beginning part of the year organizing a walk in Geneva to help support Cystic Fibrosis after finding out last year that my sister, Kate, has Cystic Fibrosis. The turn out and support for the walk was incredible as friends, family, and many, many others came together to celebrate life and raise over $55,000 for Cystic Fibrosis. However, a week before the walk, I lost my mentor and close friend, Dr. Gary Boyd, to prostate cancer. His funeral was the same day as the walk, so it was a very humbling day for me. Not only was I humbled by the amazing support of so many for the walk, but I was also humbled by the loss of life by such a great man at the early age of 54. It was truly a day to appreciate life!

In June, I lost another role model when my 95 year old grandfather passed away. The best lessons I learned from him was to always be myself and to enjoy life! Dawn and I have also spent the last year continuing to wait to start our family through adoption. Although we didn't think it would take this long, we are so grateful to have the support of our family and friends throughout the entire process.

The reason I am telling you all of this is because we all have our ups and downs during the course of a year. Looking back on the year, some of us may say it was a good year while others may say it was a bad year. I'm sure many of you would say it has been a stressful year with the economy, loss of a job, etc. But good or bad, it is how we choose to deal with those experiences and the life lessons we take away that matter. The healthier approach is to be thankful, grateful and appreciative of the different people, experiences, and opportunities we are fortunate enough to have in our lives.

I am so thankful, grateful, and appreciative for my wonderful wife, my family, my friends, my patients, the people who supported the walk for Cystic Fibrosis, the daily people I encounter, the countless lessons of Dr. Gary Boyd and my grandpa, my health, all of you reading this blog, future children, God, and life!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Have a happy, healthy, and safe New Year!!

Live Well. Laugh Often. Love Much.