Ok, you’re thinking, “what do the things in the title have in common? “ I’ll try to explain, however, the connection may only be in my particular brain. There were three things that reminded me this week to be grateful that I am a cancer SURVIVOR.
The first actually happened in the last couple of weeks. My surgeon’s office called me and told me that I had to make an appointment with the doctor to discuss the results of my recent mammogram. YIKES! Why does she have to “discuss”????? What’s wrong?????? of course the office staff member couldn’t tell me. So after waiting for a few hours I jumped on KP.org to email her. Within an hour and a half, the doctor herself (what a sweetie) called me and told me that there was something on the mammo that was, quite possibly, a small piece of plastic and that as soon as she received the images, she would call me. So for a week, I worried. Then she called and indeed it was a piece of plastic left when the cath in my shoulder was removed. Whew!!!!! I was surprised at how I felt during the short time of uncertainty–really scared. So, I recalled what I’ve been through and felt the gratitude for where I am.
The second was a moment that triggered a strong memory. I was watching an episode of “Law and Order” while I was angrily mopping the living room floor–angry because I had to mop the massive concrete floor in our house–slinging that mop with a vengeance. In the show the lady who played the Lt. for a while, don’t know her name, had just returned to work after having cancer and they were throwing her a party. She had very little hair and I think maybe she was recovering in real life, too. Anyhow, she got a cell phone call and stepped away from the party to take the call from her doctor. The dialog was, “Yes, doctor, I understand”. Then she covered her face in her hands and wept, looked up and mouthed the words “thank you”. She went back to the party and whispered something in the ear of her new fiancee and they hugged and smiled. I knew that moment, I had that moment, too. When, the surgeon called me on a Friday evening because she didn’t want me going all weekend not knowing that the results of the lab tests on the newly removed breast tissue showed that I had a “complete response” to the treatment for cancer. While watching and mopping, I sat down in the chair and cried. I know this sounds funny, but I was grateful that I could mop that floor!
And then there is yesterday. I went to the beach with Ian and his friends and their families. We played the craziest games of volleyball on and off all day. I hit, ran, jumped (only about an inch high, mind you, but jumped) and laughed a lot. One of Ian’s friends has a dad who had a horrible work accident about two years ago where he was severely burned. We were both recovering from pretty severe medical issues at the same time. He and I were both out there running, jumping and hitting that crazy volleyball like we were young kids. The moment didn’t escape either of us. We were so lucky to be there doing what we were doing.
Yesterday was a good day. I am grateful for all of my days, good and not-so-good. I hope those reminder moments keep coming. There’s a saying among health care professionals when things happen that are mistakes or whatever, “no one died today”. It’s a saying that I have often used to make people comfortable when things aren’t going so great at work to help them put things in perspective. I am grateful for the noteworthy moments in my life that help me keep perspective.
Learning Moment: As my grand son Sam would say, “Say your gratefuls”
