I dressed up a little today – a new shirt with my jeans and my flashy orange shoes given to me by a much more stylish friend. It only seemed right to look nice as I headed off to be groped by a stranger (and a machine) bright and early. I’ve never had a mammogram, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I did expect it to hurt – I’d heard all about the squeezing and squishing, and since […]
Categories: Cancer, Faith • Tags: Anxiety, Breast Cancer, Fear, Mammogram
I’ve been having trouble sleeping ever since my biopsy in January. What started as a reaction to pain medication mixed with an uncomfortable numbness of the left side of my chest, seems to have become a bit of a bad habit, one I’d desperately like to break. During one of my recent sleepless nights, I started looking up local retreats. I felt like God was calling me to spend time with Him — uninterrupted, quiet time, something that’s a bit […]
Categories: Cancer, Faith • Tags: Anxiety, Beauty, Christianity, Fear, God, Hope, Life
A few weeks ago I spent ten days with my parents. We had a wonderful time relaxing together, something we haven’t done in a long time, at least not without the interruptions of doctor’s appointments, nausea, or mouth sores. And since I’m not undergoing treatment, I was able to do something with my parents that I’ve always thoroughly enjoyed: drink wine. I wouldn’t say we went overboard, but perhaps it’s that after over a year of not drinking my tolerance is […]
Categories: 31 Days of Facing My Fears, Cancer, Faith, Parenting, Relationships • Tags: Christianity, Family, Fear, Life
This is Eugene Sampson. Gene died this past August, at the age of 81, after living a life with many twists and turns, periods of darkness and light, and moments of fear and love. I only knew Gene for the last four years of his life, but the story of his life and our friendship made a great impact on me. Gene and I lived together at L’Arche, a faith-based non-profit where people with and without disabilities share life. We […]
Categories: 31 Days of Facing My Fears, Cancer, Faith, Parenting, Relationships • Tags: Christianity, Family, Fear, Friends, L'Arche, Life
My sweet baby boy, John Paul, laughs a lot, which means that I do too. And it’s wonderful. I’ve had a few people ask me what we do all day, and I usually say, “Laugh at each other.” Of course there are moments of cleaning, cooking, laundry, walking, playing, and crying (usually just him!) thrown in there, but no matter what we’re doing, we usually end up laughing at one another. Case in point: http://www.facebook.com/v/912597125937 After finishing my second round […]
Categories: 31 Days of Facing My Fears, Cancer, Relationships • Tags: Chemotherapy, Christianity, Family, Fear, Life
“Brothers and sisters: Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 This was the reading at mass yesterday, and after hearing it, I knew what I needed to do. Today, as soon as 8 a.m. hit and I knew doctor’s offices would be opened, I called and scheduled […]
Categories: 31 Days of Facing My Fears, Cancer, Faith • Tags: Anxiety, Christianity, Fear, Life, Prayer, Suffering
