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My Final Chemo

Today I received my last chemotherapy infusion. Nine years ago today my mother died from breast cancer.

I am very happy and proud of myself for completing a grueling journey!  Being poked with countless needles, infused with “healing elixirs”, sitting for hours on end in the “chemo lounger”, losing all my hair (ALL of it), regrowing it slowly, keeping my positivity flowing in the face of nausea, mouth sores, lower than low energy levels, and weighing a mere 100 lbs, with my clothes sliding off me.

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Love Day: The Bigger Picture

Here it is again – Valentine’s Day. Love Day. Strange, really, that we seem to need a day to give gifts, adore our partner particularly lovingly, give flowers and chocolates to our beloveds. I would like to reframe Valentine’s Day. Let us make today the first day of every day that we commit to love. And not just love for The One, or friends and family, but LOVE. Living love.

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Short Term Pain for Long Term Gain

The title of this blog post is my motto for the next while. As much as my posts are mainly positive, uplifting and full of personal insight, there is also the downside of my cancer treatment to report. Right now it is tough. I am on a new, intense regimen that consists of three drugs. One of the drugs, a daily oral dose, has the common side effect of mouth sores.

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Lebensmut: The Courage to Live

The other day the German word “Lebensmut” appeared in my consciousness. Did I read it someplace? I cannot remember. The literal translation of the word is “life courage”. Some of you, dear readers of this blog, know that not so long ago I rediscovered my will to live. But when the word Lebensmut came to me, I wondered about the difference between the “will” to live, and the “courage” to live.

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