A New Chapter Begins

Dear Friends and Fans,

I had a lot of anxiety about my original trip to Florida. I was headed home after 6 years of being away. I wondered to my life coach if this was the beginning or the ending of a chapter of my life. He says it could be both, but I don't see it that way. It has to be black or white!!! I choose these past 3 weeks to be an introduction into the next chapter of my life.

I left for Fort Meyers Jan. 30Th to visit my oldest sister and her family. I met my nephew right before I left six years ago , he was an infant, and my niece... never! I was looking forward to seeing how they reacted to me. We had a blast! Went swimming and goofed around.they were so sweet, lots of cuddles. XOXOXO!!! We all packed up and headed for St. Petersburg for my youngest sister's wedding. She had a beautiful sunset wedding, and we danced like rock stars at the reception. Everyone had a great time. My grandfather was cutting a rug!! LOL. I spent the next 4 days with my mother on Pass-A-Grille Beach. We talked, and tanned on her porch. I visited with family, trained SOME, but the days went fast. Sunday before I left ,I went to the Bon Aire where my good friend "Philly" tends bar. Me, Philly, and my sissy had a blast laughing and being stupid. It's kinda funny... My sister's new husband ,Pete, was a bit upset with us because we were out playing and he didn't want me to miss my plane. He was driving me to the airport. The 3 of us giggled and talked about their upcoming honeymoon to Tennessee, to see snow... leave it to the Floridians to find the perfect place for snow.. LOL. Well ,I was early for the plane..LOL, and made it home with intentions to get PUMPED for my upcoming show May 10th. 4 days later my sister called me from the cabin, crying, and asking me to come back home. I got to her house before she did. Thank god she was there with 2 other couples, they were all best friends. They packed Melissa up and drove her back to Florida. In a nutshell here is what happened... They were in TN for 3 hours.. enough time to unpack, grab a cocktail, and head down on the Gondola for a nice dinner. Pete only made it half way down. He suffered from a pulmonary embolism. Not much could have been done for him. It was the longest ride of all o f their lives!!! Pete was 41 years old. He had by pass surgery 1.5 years ago. My sister is 35. She is coming around. Thank you for all your prayers. Me and my family greatly appreciate it. Melissa is taking it one day at a time... and is experiencing textbook mourning. I would like to personally thank Melissa's support system. She really has great friends. The men of the bunch all stood up and took care of things that to tell you the truth.. I couldn't do. The arrangements, and finalization stuff... OMG!!! No one was ready for this!! Everyone pulled together. It was hard for me, to train and keep on my diet. Her friends and families all made food and had get togethers. I never realized how important these things were to people in this situation. I guess I never thought it matters, well IT DOES. I'm really going to change some of my ways.

I did take some time to myself. It's not easy lying around with someone in mourning. My goal was to watch the sunset every night. It was beautiful!! The weather was perfect everyday. I walked to the Don Cesar and back every morning... it equals 3 miles... in flip flops. my leg, calfs and glutes were hard pumped. It felt great the hot sun on my back and body... OOOOH a feeling I miss!

So, how this is the beginning of a new chapter in my life... I gained new self respect. I was feeling like my life here was becoming to hectic and a hassle.. to much work for one person. After going back to my roots, I've realized the empire I've built for myself. All the hard work and life I built for myself became accentuated in my mind. I was geared to come home and really work hard at my practice and get motivated in the gym. I've been back a week today, and have managed to grab on to 6 lbs. My shoulder is almost to 100%. I'm big, full yet ripped. I want to hold my weight as long as possible. It's funny.. most are the other way around. I have to keep the body fat low by slowly starting light cardio. I've never been in such a good position. I'm going to continue to keep my muscles pumped and hard. I have my posing music and am working on my routine. I'm feeling strong... I look forward to bringing in a tight symmetrical package.

The picture is from my moms back yard.

Thank you again for all your support. I do appreciate you all. I'm getting to my emails today too, so you should hear from me shortly if you have not been answered.

You Pro,

Dr. Dena