Sometimes fate works in strange ways. I decided not to go to my high school reunion (which would have been over a 1000 mile journey, but that's not really why, as I blogged about yesterday.)
I am very excited - and apprehensive - about what will happen later today, instead.
Today, I hopefully will have the opportunity to visit a dear childhood friend, who I went to school with throughout part of elementary school, and all of junior high and high school. We went our separate ways after high school, but have always stayed in touch-and visited at times. I got married in her house.
30 years ago this year, my friend was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. After a 9 month fight, including some 20 plus chemo treatments, a heart attack, and three major surgeries, she was in remission. And she remained "cured" for 29 years.
But late last year, she got some very bad news after a routine medical test found a spot on her lung. She had cancer again.
Now she is undergoing chemo. I hope she has a good day today, and we can visit. All I can say is when she called me that fateful day to tell me of her diagnosis, we ended up cracking jokes and laughing. It's that type of friendship.
And there is one thing I want to get (forgive me) off my chest.
My friend has lung cancer. And yes, I am going to answer that unspoken question that no doubt is forming in your mind right now. She is a nonsmoker. She never smoked.
Why do people always ask if someone fighting lung cancer was a smoker? Or worse yet, assume that everyone battling lung cancer was a smoker?
Why should a person ever be blamed for their body "cancering" (as one oncologist refers to it). Could it be that it gives us a false sense of security? That, if we eat enough blueberries, avoid white sugar, or exercise 3 hours a day, we will never hear the dreaded diagnosis that begins with a C.
Indeed, there are other risk factors to lung cancer.
Please, do not ever play the "blame game" with a person who has cancer. They need your support. Not your speculation.
End of lecture.
I'll let you know how it went when I get back home. I'm thrilled....apprehensive....privleged. I can't wait.
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