Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! I love this time of year. The temperature changes, the leaves turn beautiful colors, and the feeling of change fills the air. Usually, these things happen in October around here, but this year the seasons have been off just a little, so Fall was short and taken over quickly by freezing temperatures.

I think the feeling of change in the air is what I love most about Fall. There is an excitement of something new coming and I look with anticipation over the horizon to what it might be.

This time last year, I had no idea the change that would be coming for me in 2019, although it was a difficult year, I am so thankful for it all.

The month of November tends to bring out the grateful side of us. This is a great time to look back over the year and remember the good, find the positives, and express thanksgiving. Oddly enough, for me, the good and positive came through the diagnosis, treatment, and pain of cancer.

I am grateful for God's gentle hand in the midst of the most difficult year of my life. I am thankful for my family and friends, and there are no words to describe how much I appreciate each day I live.

🎵 I will enter His gates with thanksgiving in my heart I will enter His courts with praise. I will say this is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice for He has made me glad. 🎵

A New Journey

I was diagnosed with Stage 2 Triple Negative Ductal Carcinoma in my right breast on January 11th, started chemotherapy on February 12th, had surgery on July 15th, and radiation began on August 29th. As of October 29th, I have completed my last treatment for cancer. Every treatment has come with several side effects that caused pain and fatigue. Weeks of treatment followed by weeks of recovery. It has been a very long year of fighting and by God's grace, I have won the battle.

From the beginning, I knew that my life would never be the same, so I wanted to be changed for the better on the other side of this journey. As I take the time to look back, I can see change, growth, and insights into parts of myself that I had never known before.

I have a new appreciation for my family and friends. They supported me in prayer, encouragement, sacrifice, acts of kindness, and love. They took the time to send cards, texts, and food. They made trips to visit me, researched ways to help me, and gave gifts of love. I am blessed beyond measure.

Some of the unknowns, in the beginning, were a bit scary. I didn't know what my hair would look like when it grew back but I am pleased that it has given me a slight resemblance to my daddy.

I have always considered myself "daddy's little girl" and today, at 50 years old, married, with children; I am still his little girl in my heart. I have always been impressed by his physical strength, but it is his strong love for God that I admire the most. 

I suppose all "daddy's girls" have a special daddy-shaped-place in their hearts that no one else can fill. Daddy is always the one we hope will be the proudest of us. We look for his character qualities in the man we want to marry, which I am happy to say that I found.

I am definitely a daddy's girl, but for a while, I looked like my brother. My mom said that when we were born we were like twins 5 years apart. We both weighed 8lbs 13oz, 21in long, and looked exactly alike. Now, 45 years later...poof...twinkies again!

This has been an amazing journey that has come to an end, but oddly enough, I find myself on a new road. What will life be like when the recovery is over. I will no longer be sick, in treatment, fatigued, in pain, or being lifted in prayer. 

I have been through the Refiner's fire. When I rise up from the ashes and shake off the soot, who will emerge?

I am looking forward to walking this new road, exploring the new sights, and experiencing a new life on this journey to the other side of cancer. 

I want to thank everyone who has prayed for me and walked with me through this year. I am so grateful for you and blessed to have you in my life. I love you all.