Thawing Out

 Certificate of Completion - Welch Cancer Center

 Gift of quilt from Tongue River Quilters

February Thaw Photos

 Ice from new drain - it works some of the time!

Driveway is a sea of mud

daily haiku

in mid winter sun
snow turns to slush and mud
a joyful mess

A joyful mess indeed! The warmth is appreciated, the mud only as far as it indicates better weather. Cold waves will come in again, but right now it is great to see the sun most days and walk outdoors in the 40's instead of indoors on the treadmill.

It is good to be writing in my blog again; I haven't had the time or inclination to do so over the last few months. It seems a long time mentally and physically since my last blog on November 10th.  

In August last year - my annual mammogram returned a verdict of abnormality. It showed a cluster of calcium crystals that could indicate a malignancy. I had a second opinion which said the same, that a biopsy was needed.  The biopsy showed malignant cells present. I was diagnosed with DCIS (Duct Carcinoma In Situ)  The news was bad, but also good. DCIS stays in the duct and is not invasive - good; I needed a lumpectomy - bad. So in October and November I had two surgeries. The second just to take more tissue because the pathologist felt not enough tissue had been removed on the "edges" of the site the first time. All pathology came back as non-invasive.  After this I was scheduled for 33 radiation sessions.  Surgery plus radiation raises the chances of the malignancy or other malignancies NOT occurring up to the 97% percentile so I felt it was worthwhile. The sessions were daily Mon-Fri at the Welch Cancer Center in Sheridan. I completed last Monday, January 28th 2013, and am at home healing, thankful that it is all over. 

I am so very thankful about many things. The first that I live in the age of the mammogram and it was found even before a lump had formed. The second for the staff and top rate equipment at the Welch Center in Sheridan who have been my friends and encouragement team for the last 5 months. And for my family and many friends who have given me their love and support throughout, especially Thelma who gave me a home and caring friendship throughout the operations and therapy sessions; Owen and Diana who looked after my house while I was away during the week; Aaron who listened to my anger and understood; Art and Kathy who continued to write daily and listened to my occasional whining; and all those friends who prayed for me - I know it makes a difference. 

I did not share what I was going through with my neighbors here, only my close friends. Cancer is a scary condition - many of us have relatives and friends who died from it. But as time elapses more and more therapies are available that are creating a big pool of us "cancer survivors" which is getting larger with each succeeding year. I did not want to be affected by attitudes of negativity, and in that way I could stay positive and involved with my own self-caring a day at a time. If someone we know is diagnosed with a malignancy - we owe it to them most of all to project hope. 


Right now I have hope for my own future and ripe old age - after all my great-grandmother was over 100 yrs old when she died and I use her as a role model!  In the meantime - to all women who read this - don't play with the date for your annual mammogram get it each year and on time. And to the men who love them - make sure they get it - be aware of which month of the year the appointment comes up and don't hesitate to give reminders. Mammograms save lives. I know firsthand.