Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Stroke Survivor March 20, 2012

Anniversary #6
That pin was a gift on my 50th Birthday.  Ten days before my 49th birthday (six years ago today), I had a stroke.  If you're a regular reader, you know that.  If you're not, you can read about it here, here, and here.

Back to the pin.  Of course, it isn't true.  There are a lot of people who have survived worse.  Right now on my prayer list are a 17 year old student facing 62 more interferon treatments for pediatric bone cancer, another former student with stage 4 melanoma, a 17 year old girl from rival town who had a tumor the size of a baseball removed from her brain last week, and a dear church lady fighting pancreatic cancer.  It is true: if we look around we can always find someone who has it worse.  (Though six years ago, I'm pretty sure I wasn't thinking that.)

I was/am incredibly lucky, blessed, fortunate.

Still, that pin reminds me daily that I am a survivor.  Every day, every year is one more day, one more year that I almost didn't have--and probably don't deserve.  I try to remember that.

"We're all terminal.  Some of us are just lucky enough to know it."

6 comments:

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

Congratulations on being a survivor Mrs. E.

FlowerLady

S. Etole said...

May you have many more wonderful years.

Kim said...

Celebrating with you today, Mrs. E! I interviewed someone yesterday for a story, and he said he'd recently celebrated his 9th birthday. I thought maybe he was a Leap Year baby. Instead, it was the 9th anniversary of the day his heart stopped (and, obviously, was resuscitated!) Life can change in an instant, so this is a good reminder to celebrate the small things - and the big things, too!

tiff@thecoffeehouse said...

You are one strong and amazing woman!!

cel g said...

God bless you and your family.

Christa G said...

You are an inspiration Mrs. E!!