A Revolving Door of Smiles

Our house is like a tropical greenhouse of floral arrangements. Our refrigerator and freezer packed to the gills with delicious stick-to-the-bones home cooked favorites and sweet treats. A visit from the brown UPS truck has been a daily occurence and they're getting to know Sammy's bark. I am so incredibly humbled by the continued outpouring of thoughtful surprises that make me smile. From quote books, flip flops and cancer memorabilia to Broadway videos, comfy pjs, chemo survival kits and dry ice-packed meals, and stacks of heartfelt cards, every day has brought something that made me smile, laugh or cry (or most of the time do all three at once.) 

In one of the books I received, "I'd Rather Do Chemo Than Clean Out the Garage," the author comments that everyone should get hit by a truck just once to see how much they're cared about. It's totally true. Not that I'd ever wish that upon anyone, but it is true. Coming out with your cancer diagnosis is eerily like attending your own funeral, but you actually get to enjoy it, know what incredibly amazing people you have in your life and be humbled by how much they really care about you. I never knew how much my life affected others and how we're all so intertwined. It's been hard to understand that people are finding my story inspiring and hard to accept the outpourings of help but I'm realizing that that's what friends are for: to build you up and for you to lean on. 

Our house has been filled with lots of laughs and love. So many smiling faces have stopped by to share their support, hang out, make a quick drop off, or spend hours talking, laughing and relaxing. Whether its a game of Rummy 500 with my mom and gramma, a night of both cheese and chocolate fondue then classic Bill Cosby comedy with my brother and sister-in-law (and baby niece or nephew in the womb), surprise visits from family and friends I haven't seen in ages, or an afternoon on the porch in the sun laughing about bathroom humor and high school antics with some of the most amazing women that I know, my girlz, the healing powers are immeasurable.