I had never found you and the GFFA?

Would my life be as rich as it is now?

Quite honestly, in some respects, no. Don't get me wrong. I have a wonderful life. I have a loving, supportive husband who, in many respects, is the better part of me. I wish you could meet him. I really think you'd like him. His dry wit has kept me laughing the 25 plus years we've been married. When I came home one day, after five years of marriage, and told him I wanted to leave my job as a newspaper reporter and join the Marine Corps, he was the only person to offer his unconditional support right from the start. That is indicative of how special he is. I have two beautiful daughters. While each is lovely in appearance, I use the word "beautiful" to describe their spirits. They both are kind, considerate, respectful, loving individuals. Those are only some of their positive traits. (Do I sound like a proud mama? Trust me, I have cause to be! ) I have two jobs - one I absolutely love and the other is enjoyable (most of the time ). I live in a comfortable home with the people I love most in the world, and have a pretty tight network of extended family and friends.

That brings me to the GFFA, and to you. What if I never had stumbled across that little sci-fi flick 30 years ago? What if I hadn't been so mesmerized by the story that was more fantasy than science fiction? If I hadn't stumbled upon Star Wars, my life would be just as sweet, I have to admit, but that extra spoonful of sugar adds more flavor to my life. When I really think about it, Star Wars has helped me stretch my imagination. It exposed me to a whole new genre and that, in the long run, has brought me to you.

While it's true I haven't met many of you in person, I have had the honor and pleasure of getting to know many of you through your thoughtful musings about the world we know as Star Wars and, often, how it relates to real life. I've had the thrilling experience of meeting a few of you in IRL get-togethers. . . and the upcoming CIV will give me the opportunity to meet even more of you!!! I can't wait!!!

What if George Lucas' imagination had not taken him to that Galaxy Far Far Away? There would be no Darth Vader . . . no Princess Leia . . . no lightsabers . . . no Naboo, Tatooine, Coruscant . . . no Obi-wan Kenobi . . . no Luke Skywalker. There would be no blogsville. Most of us never would have met.

Thank you - all of you - for being a part of my life. You mean more to me than you're ever likely to know.

With the biggest party of 2007 less than one week away, it's time to close the Countdown To CIV Raffles with the last one in the series. If you'd like a chance at this last Countdown drawing, please click on the "contact blogger" box. Make sure you type "Add My Name To The Hat" and please include your blog name and your email address. The raffle is open to everyone, including previous winners. There is no cost to you. The drawing will be held Monday morning, at which time I will contact the winners. I hope you all choose to enter this last Countdown To CIV Raffle!

Good luck, my friends. I am so glad my "What If . . ." never occurred!

MTFBWY
JMW

p.s. In case you're interested, the winners of the last raffle were JediPug1, greenandwhitejedi, megatrends and rainbow droideka. Congratulations!!!

p.p.s. I want to thank you all for your patience regarding my headaches with setting up my webpage. I had every intention of linking my raffles to there, but it just didn't work out. I have no idea why it isn't working properly for me. My wonderful hubby has promised to help me over the summer so it is in place for the holidays, when I intend to hold the next series of raffles! Thanks again!