As some of you know our younger daughter Shanon was diagnosed with Invasive Lobular Carcinoma (breast cancer). She had her first chemo treatment Monday June 24. She and we are thankful that one is behind. She and we dread #2, 3, and 4. She is amazingly strong and determined. The good news is that everything is in her favor: youth, early detection, and otherwise good health.
We have a love/hate relationship with chemotherapy. It is "poison." We hate how it makes a recipient feel. We hate what it does to someone outwardly. We hate the "negative" side effects. We LOVE what the intended outcomes are. We LOVE expecting and hoping for wholeness. We LOVE the future of joy and shared life and anticipated experiences. We LOVE the closeness we share and the enhanced gratitude for this wondrous gift of life.
She inspires us!
In quiet moments I reflect on the power of this experience as a metaphor for life as a whole. How often painful, dreaded experiences ultimately bring joy and love and wholeness. Childbirth (I'm told :) ) is about as painful as it gets. But consider the inexpressible joy that eliminates the memory of that pain. Some of us lived through the sixties. They were painful. Change is frequently painful. While that change was frightening to some (whites?), it was wonderful and liberating for others. Change in laws regulating marriage is frightening to some but allows freedom and joy for others. Allowing people to marry whom they will does no harm to those who choose heterosexual marriage for themselves. When change is constructive and ends in wholeness and the increase of love, acceptance, and affirmation, while uncomfortable and painful temporarily, consider the potential.
No one is guaranteed tomorrow, but if our actions and decisions are guided by service to others and love for all, we can trust and HOPE in the future with confidence.
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