In the past few days I have been so impressed by how many good people there really are 'out there'.
Last week was evidence with the people that so readily accommodated my need for rides on Thursday.
The Breast Cancer forum I belong to is also more evidence. This supportive group of ladies from all over the world reach out to each other at all stages of their journeys to help each other out, in whatever form might be required for each situation. Last week proved this again by the support that was given to the lady that I sat with during her first chemo, in the days following her chemo. In addition, on one particular thread that I belong to, many that have now completed their treatment are coming back to continue to support those of us who are still going through our treatment, giving much needed encouragement and hope. One of these ladies started a 2013 Survivors thread so we could all stay in contact and there is the hope that we can arrange for as many of us as possible to get together to meet at some point in the hopefully not too distant future.
In other areas of my life, when I mentioned my mother moving and our need for a bed for her, we were immediately approached with the offer of a bed that the user has the ability to raise the head or knees on. What a blessing to know this item is taken care of.
I stayed pretty quiet again through the day yesterday and it was late afternoon when Rod and Kenny came home from church followed by a hockey practice for Kenny. What a pleasant surprise to see Rod carrying a beautiful bouquet of flowers from Steph and Mike with a nice card to go with. Just because. :)
This a.m. I once again found myself at Wellsprings, the house that offers programs for people dealing with cancer. This morning's program was called 'Cancer Chic' and it is put on by two ladies who have gone through the cancer experience themselves. Once through, they got together and started this organization to do workshops to help other women going through treatment. The workshop was 2 1/2 hours long and was comprised of 3 parts, each part starting with the person presenting sharing their cancer story - the first part was presented by a lady who spoke to how exercise helped her through her treatment and recovery (she was a shining example of fitness and very inspirational), the second was a makeup demonstration, complete with donated samples of chemical free makeup products, and participants as models for various techniques, with the last part being about dealing with hair loss, the emotional component and then some practical tips along with pictures of this woman's hair re growth over the past two years and the different styles along the way. In addition to the makeup samples provided, there were goodie bags containing lots of other products and handouts to go along with the information presented. One of the packages that was provided in our bags was from a lady who heard of what these ladies were doing and wanted to do something to add, the beautifully presented package of products from her were her way of doing this. At this point in my treatment, gestures like this mean so much. Oprah's 'My Favorite Things' was on TV last evening and she made a statement that it wasn't the 'things' that were received that would speak to the people who received them but the fact that they were recognized and made to feel good on that day that they would remember. I agree.
I remained at Wellsprings this afternoon for my second ceramics class, the vase does look much better following being 'fired'. Today we glazed and the vases will be fired once again, apparently the type of glaze we used will make them look 'glass-like' and can hide a multitude of sins. We shall see.
On my way out, there was a new receptionist at the desk. We glanced at each other and then each of us did second takes. The lady manning the desk was someone I had worked with as we implemented the electronic health record in our health region, someone who I have great respect for. She lost her husband to cancer a few years ago. We caught up a little with each other and I found out that she uses vacation time to do volunteer shifts for Wellsprings, her way of giving back.
There are a so many good people out there! I am going to leave you with a video that was placed on Facebook today by someone who has been following and encouraging me in my cancer journey as she is also going through her own cancer journey. It sums up this post. Thank you, Joan.
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=y-Q0XTAPWi4&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dy-Q0XTAPWi4
Take care, everyone.
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