Sine Waves and the meaning of Life

 It's been a trying couple of weeks around Rancho Juvat.  As I was pondering them and the results the Lord was expecting from them, I kinda came up with a realization.

My new working hypothesis on Life?  Thought you'd never ask, Sarge.

Life is like a Sine Wave.

WTF is a Sine Wave, juvat?  Well, Beans (Had to change persons in the conversation. Sarge knows, he deals with them all the time.)  According to the All-Knowing Wikipedia, a Sine Wave is:

"A sine wave, sinusoidal wave, or just sinusoid is a mathematical curve defined in terms of the sine trigonometric function, of which it is the graph.^[1] It is a type of continuous wave and also a smooth periodic function.^[2] It occurs often in mathematics, as well as in physics, engineering, signal processing and many other fields."

Isn't that a perfectly clear and understandable definition?

Because I was a simple Fighter Pilot once, a picture is worth (in this case) a million words.

 

Source

One of the functions performed by a sine wave is to make the Radar on my jet work.  That was kinda important to me.

But...For purposes of this post, I think a sine wave kinda reflects life.  Lots of ups and downs and one usually follows the other.  If one refers to the peaks as good things happening  and the valleys as less good, maybe even bad, things, then I think it makes sense.

Lots of good/great things happened around here over the past couple of weeks.

Having the family together for the Holidays is always a great thing.  That particular Sine Wave covered about 5 months.  Since July anyhow. 

Birth of Second Granddaughter?  Peak.  At 27 weeks & 8" 1 lb 2 oz? Valley.  Little J arriving before Mom woke up from the surgery? Peak.  All the events in LJD's life progress since? Mostly peaks with some valleys.

However...And it's a big one...This past week the NICU Doc in charge of LJD's case told Little J and LJW  that she would most likely be released from the NICU this week.  

Mt Everest Peak. 

Little J and LJW as well as Mrs. J and I will have to learn how to insert a nasal cannula feeding tube prior to her release.  Very shallow valley.  Little J has to report back to assignment mid-January. Bigger valley.  LJD won't be able to join him (which means neither will LJW) until the tube is not required.  So, sometime this summerish. Another Valley.  But all doable.

MBD, The Rev and MG visiting for Christmas? Very nice peak.  MG is 14 months, walking, starting to talk.  Also a nice peak.  MBD teaching her basic sign language? A very big peak. No, not needed.  She'd read that babies can learn to use hand gestures to communicate basic needs faster than verbally.  Seems to be working.  

This past week, MBD and The Rev  taking a little mini-vacation and leaving MG with us for 4 Days.  Huge Peak, maybe not Mt Everest, but certainly Pike's Peak.  

Had a blast! 

The only downside to that visit is "Miss Rachel and Songs for Littles".  (No, I will not accept any responsibility for loss of sanity incurred by clicking the link and watching the video.")

Source

But, as the above graph shows.  Every up is followed by a down.  A couple of days before Christmas, Mrs J and I were on our way to College Station when her phone rang.  It was from our Niece, she's the daughter of Mrs J's older sister, and a registered nurse at the VA.  She'd received word that her aunt's (Mrs. J's younger sister who lives very near her) house was on fire and could we go there and work with the Sheriff's deputy on station there.  

The graph is definitely on the down hill side.

Unfortunately, it would take a couple of hours to turn around and get back, so not real responsive.  We called Little J and he went over.

Called me back a bit later and told me to take the phone off speaker.

Mrs. J's sister didn't make it out.

Ahhh...Shit!

Praying for few dozen major graph upswings to come along soon, Lord! 

 

That was pretty fast, yet good, reminder of the realities of life. Thanks, Lord!

Peace out, Y'all.  Ya gotta roll with the flow. In other words...

Never give up...Never surrender!