A lot has happened in the past few months so thought it was
time to update my blog.
I am one minor procedure away from having a new silhouette,
perkier than before, but bearing the scars of a war. While I am very happy to be able to wear a
bra and clothes and even a sports bra to run in come the new year, I suppose I
will always grieve for the original breasts I no longer have. One is, as my surgeon put it, "18
forever", and the other, although surgically lifted, will age with
time. As he said, "They're sisters,
not twins." I don't think they every
truly matched anyway. It just reiterates
the saying, "You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone."
I'm so thankful to have come through cancer-free with the
love and support of so many friends and family so I will continue to look to
the positive side of all of this. I'm
alive. Those who love me no longer have
to take me to appointments and hold my hand through each fear-filled moment.
Now, as I look forward, I will focus on a healthy,
fitness-filled, get-back-into-shape new year.
I will also look forward to working again to have some sort of normalcy
to everyday life. To wake up with a
purpose other than doctor's appointments, surgical procedures or cancer
treatments is something I am getting used to and really appreciating. Being able to change my sheets or scrub my
bathtub without assistance or even grocery shop on my own are further signs of
life returning to "before cancer".
While I still think of life in those terms, "before" and
"after", I am determined not to have this past 16 months identify
me. It will always just be a chapter in
my story like so many others.
I have rekindled old friendships, made new ones and rejoiced
in my current ones. My friends have become friends with each other
and this makes my heart happy. We are An
incredibly strong group of women (with a few of their husbands and children sprinkled
in for good measure) who have supported each other through so many things over
the past couple of years that it's hard to imagine my life without any one of
them.
No more cancer, no more worries about cancer, no more blogs. So to you, my cherished friends and family,
it's time to move forward into the new year with good health, happiness and a
whole lot of fun!
