This joyful wife and mom is re-evaluating her role in life and looks forward to new interests and pursuit of old talents.
Deyhle Name: Deyhle Born: 4/28/1954 Children: Blake (24), Leia (23) Status: Married 30 years Occupation: Homemaker, volunteer, former schoolteacher Hometown: Canyon, Texas
Meet : "I married my college roommate's brother. He was my first date in college. And my roommate married a friend of mine from South Texas. So the best friends became sisters-in-law, and my two friends got married. They ended up in Amarillo, which is near Canyon, and when we get together now, we just think back and laugh.
"I want to take up guitar lessons. I played in high school, but haven't since then, and I really loved it. I'm also going through training to volunteer with the prison ministry. It's a program where I'll visit a female inmate one-on-one and become a friend to her and just be there for her to talk to."
Fitness routine: "I don't have much of a routine. Walking is what I enjoy the most, fast walking. I walk in the neighborhood, sometimes with friends. Recently, I was concerned about osteoporosis, so I went to a trainer to work out with weights, but I had a problem with a disk in my neck, so I had to put that on hold for now."
Biggest challenge: "Probably the biggest challenge was losing my sweet mother to breast cancer at just 66, much too young. I was 41 at the time, but everyone needs their mother. She gave a lot of love, but we all needed her so much longer. Still, it was amazing how we really enjoyed every day, even those last days. She taught me so much about how to live and she taught me about how to die, too."
Inspirations: "My daughter has taught me so much courage. She's so much braver than I ever was. She has always reached and strived for more, and now she encourages me to do more for me. I dabble in writing poetry and essays about my family, and she loves my writing. I've never sent anything to a publisher, but she's insisting that I do, and I'm getting closer to following through."
Smartest move: "At the young age of 20, to be able to see the man my husband would become. I'm amazed it worked out -- maybe it wasn't so smart as lucky. I knew he was the kind of man who'd always be there. Not that we haven't had our ups and downs, but he has become that man."
Major change over 40: "Since I had put so much into my parenting, it's strange to think of that role shifting from mother to someone else as well as mother. In my mid-40s, I started wondering and searching and thinking about that change. But I've loved turning 50. I've never minded aging. I hope to gracefully let my looks come as they may. My grandmother once said she felt comfortable in her skin. I feel that way now and hope to continue to feel this way."
