I am a survivor


November 26, 2009 marked the first anniversary of my undergoing a surgical
lumpectomy for breast cancer. On Thanksgiving Day I added to all that I have to give thanks for, most especially my life and family, gratitude that I am a survivor.

I received the bad news of a negative biopsy just after Barack Obama's election as President. My diagnosis seemed so unreal, standing in the hospital parking lot talking on my cell phone with my son. I did not know what to expect, and felt very apprehensive. I was living alone in a city far from family, stressed out by struggling with two small business in an economy that was in free fall. That month I lost the last of my students and income from the one business.

All of the appointments with my doctor and the nurse at the cancer center were a blur, as they discussed the treatments, surgery followed by radiation and possibly chemotherapy. Overwhelmed, I turned to my faith and began praying a novena to St. Anthony for a miracle and healing. My son came out to be there on the day of my surgery; I was praying my rosary when he came in just before I went down to the operating room.

When I awoke I could scarcely believe the surgeon's words as I heard him say he had not had to remove any of my lymph nodes as the tumor had appeared to be limited in the breast, but more tests results would be forthcoming for a definite confirmation of the result.

Two days later, when I awakened my first thought was, "It is good to be alive!"

The next week the nurse at the cancer center shared that the test results following my surgery revealed the cancer to be early stage one and a less aggressive type, so I would only have to go through radiation and not chemo-therapy.

Thoughts swirled through my mind-- how would I manage to get through this? One thing I had decided was to spend Christmas with my family prior to starting the radiation. I was able to be with both of my children and their families and all five grandchildren together for the first time.
The joy I felt being together with them was like a healing balm.

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