Reflections on a turquoise ocean, the love of family and friends, and embracing this thing called cancer.

With just a few hours left of my "Relax Before Chemo" trip to Hawaii, Jeff has left for work, and I'm alone in our room reflecting. What a wonderful trip this has been! Time alone with my love was priceless. The only time we talked about "it" was when I said that the next few months were going to be bumpy... to which he replied that a lot of things would change. Nothing else was said. The weather was not too hot but hot enough for air conditioning, not too rainy but wet enough for Jeff to don a plastic poncho on our double decker bus trip last night, and a bit too humid so as to keep the sinus pressure headaches going. The salty ocean waves were therapeutic for my sinuses and so much fun! We reconnected on the beaches of Hawaii! The water here is a color of turquoise that is so beautiful, the sand is so clean, and the beaches are so shallow that I could walk out only ankle deep in some areas for a long way. It was like walking on water! As I mentioned in a previous post, I thought I was coming here to forget about cancer for a while; and yet, it became clear the Lord was showing me that I was coming here to embrace it. First was soldier Nathan with his gift. Next, Zachary introduced me to Laura, the mom of a new friend he met while visiting us here, that is a breast cancer survivor. She offered to be a sounding board and we exchanged online contact info. I feel compelled to add that he also introduced me to a lovely family visiting Hawaii from their home in Australia to watch the  big surfing competition. Although I did take every opportunity to brag on him, I never once said out loud that he was still single! It was fun vacationing with Zach, who loves to shop like his mom! When the fact that I was starting Chemo next week came up in conversation with our new friends, and I realized he hadn't told them about my cancer, that was a beautiful reminder that our lives do not revolve around this awful disease! While my long time friends encourage and  help me daily, meeting new friends is a very optimistic feeling! And I can certainly embrace that!
Now, although I thought that I had seen my share of "Say yes to the dress!" shows while planning for Hope to get married, today as I sit here with the tv just playing... it's that show again. The first of 2 episodes featured a bride to be who just lost her mother to cancer the day after her engagement, which was the last thing hey mom heard. This was followed by a bride who brought her fiance to help pick out her dress because just weeks after their proposal, she was diagnosed with cancer and has spent the last year fighting it with him right by her side. Both were touching stories, but what were the odds? There seems to be a theme of encouragement, compassion, and testimonials of strength and healing that is spreading around when even strangers meet. Time to make sure my Christmas cards get postmarked from Honolulu! There are now 4 appointments I must go to tomorrow afternoon on my way home from the airport, and 4 days till treatment commences! More to come...