Yes, it is one of those days. The kind of cancer your child has/had does not make a difference. There is fear and trepidation and panic and deep depression no matter what the diagnosis. The test is that all of these kids qualify for a Make-A-Wish because of their condition. They all have life threatening illness. Those of us in Cancer World have seen even the "best" treatment fail, and fail miserably.
Time and time again the kids die, relapse, fail to achieve remission, develop a secondary cancer, life long struggles with thyroid, skin issues, GVHD, weird hair stuff, infertility.
We all know the number of kids that are diagnosed do better now but it is still a heart break with every single child that leaves the corporeal world to join the universe. Heart breaking when a tumor comes back, when a close chemo buddy dies.
Despite the loss, the sadness, the failure to cure, the great unknown about the future, we have to continue. We have to continue to support each other, try to make a difference and hope the postings about death and relapse become less a part of our lives.
Today we honor those that have died since of May 2014 of Osteo Sarcoma. The boys are gone. Katie, the tall lovely girl in the middle is gone. All gone too soon. All shared the same cursed disease, all were loved and honored and valued and cherished. All are missed. Nicole, the lovely child on the left remains cancer free. Or as they say in Osteo world. NED, no evidence of disease.
This is the best those families can hope for at any given moment. NED. But the docs are always on guard about finding the disease again. Sort of like Dr. Carpenter, he told me I could relax for NOW. I wanted it to be forever.
So today, March 27, 2015 we are thankful and grateful for NOW. Because NOW is all we can count on. NOW is a good place to be.
She looks Great!
Who would ever know she had Leukemia.
Boy treatment must have been very successful.
How could you ever guess she has had 349 doses of chemo therapy?
We hear this all the time. When the kids really look green and have no hair and have a tube sticking out of their noses, people know.
It is the times when the hair comes back, maintenance begins and the less obvious effects are there but only if you know where and what to look for. (never end a sentence with a preposition.) If you are in the know, you can tell. The small 1/8th scar at the neck, the back of the arm stretch marks only from massive prednison. Chipmunk cheeks. The constant use of purell
. The fear of salad bars. The squirming at the sight of the stagnant pool of water holding the ice cream scoops between servings.
So much is not visible. They have color in their cheeks, cute curly hair, a smile that does not quit.
There is a curious inner strength and wise visage. It masks the loss of brain matter, fertility, thyroid function, heart health, lung capacity, hip, knee, and shoulder joints. No one sees the places where future cancer lurks waiting to show itself.
Everything is not what they seem.
Many friends and acquaintances knew we were spending time at the NCAA tournament. Gonzaga played North Dakota State. Gonzaga really struggled. North Dakota State was tall, and powerful and could shoot like crazy. Not only did they shoot, they sunk so many balls without touching the rim, I worried. It was sort of crazy. They pushed and went ahead on more than one occasion. Gonzaga did not pull away, ever, for very far. I was not willing to believe they were going to win until the the last 36 seconds.
I talked with a friend this morning and I said it was hard game to watch. "But they won by 10 points."
It made me think. Many of our Cancer Kids "look great". Have hair. Have color in their cheeks. Are smiling. Are back in school. College. Playing sports, in the orchestra. But.... it has come at a cost. A huge emotion, physical and future cost. Costs we can't even calculate as we spend time sitting in the waiting room for the next blood draw, the next LP, the next scan.
It is always a good idea to step back, and maybe ask a follow up question. Take a moment to not assume everything is as it seems.
Here is hoping to continued good health AND a better game tomorrow night.
I'm not sure how much you know about what I have been through. I think you guess a lot but have tried to keep focused on your journey. As you know WE had cancer. WE had a relapse. WE had a Double Cord Blood Transplant. But you have returned to your life and I am sort of waiting for mine to be found again.
I think I have been looking in all the wrong places. It is such a weird thing to loose your way when you are not ready to be done with your working life. It just seems unreal. I am not ready to step back from the world just yet. I still feel 18 and have lots to offer. I am just wiser than I used to be. I have seem more, felt more and lost more. This next part needs to be good because, let's face it, I am a bit more than middle-aged.
This last week I have had a chance to re-connect with some friends. They say you can see yourself most clearly in the eyes of others. It is always good to see a positive reflections. And to be honest, I don't think it was just the good wine we drank.
I think I might have to turn back a bit to law. To figure out a way to use my specialized skill set but not be eaten alive. I have realized that to do the Family Law piece the way I did it, I took on the pain of the family. It was woven into my being, I don't have that capacity any more. My own pain and worry have filled that part of my being.
Okay, let me see if I can figure that out....
There is a certain urgency when a child has been diagnosed. We rush to do so many things. Memories have to be made and made NOW.
What if these are the last of the memories? What if we don't survive long enough to go on our Make-A-Wish? What if there is no time for high school and college and marriage and the first job and the first car and the first broken heart? What if? It is a panic that strikes the heart of each and every parent, grandparent, relatives and friends. We have to make memories NOW. We have to take advantage of this time, this moment, this......
everything.
Well, take it from an expert, there are plenty of memories being made each and every moment. Each day, each blood draw, each visit from the Child Life, Social Worker, Ukulele Guy. Now granted not all the memories are good. Treatment will erase many memories, but there will be memories. They will be a different kind and those that share them will be altered by the events. But often there are bits and pieces of good memories.
We are altered to our very core. On a cellular level. When your child faces amputation, total body radiation, red, blue, yellow chemo, and endless invasive procedures, bone marrow transplants, it has to change you. As you watch people you love perish and their loved ones writhe in pain for moments, and hours and months and years, it is hard not to be transformed.
Human beings are made up by the bits and pieces of who we are and what we learn and experience in life. We absorb things every day. We also are a product of what we remember. Often we are a bit like Kimchi and need to sit about and wait until we are done. But eventually there is a good end product.
The moment we hear the words "Your Child Has ____________________ we begin to incorporate the new "Memories" into who we are and will become.
It is a good reminder that we should value, treasure and work on this every single day....
