Cancerversary!

Cancerversary, is that a word?  Well, to cancer survivors, yes.  There is some controversy over which day qualifies as your cancerversary, but I choose to celebrate mine on the day I was diagnosed.  It has been three years since I heard the words no one expects or wants to hear..."You have cancer".  I remember it like it was yesterday, yet it seems like a lifetime ago.  Some may wonder why I would come back to this picture of my bald head with no eyebrows or eyelashes...well, I never want to forget this battle.  I never want to take for granted what a gift life this!  

When I reflect on the last three years, it is such an emotional roller coaster.  I have celebrated my survival, mourned the loss of my dad to lung cancer, been inspired by my mom's courage to fight her own battle with breast cancer, although she lost this battle three short months ago.

In three weeks I will ride Pelotonia and what better way to celebrate my Cancerversary and my survival!  Although, this year I have officially lost my mind and will tackle the 180 miles over 2 days in an effort to raise awareness and funds to support cancer research.  This will be one of the hardest things I have ever done physically, but THE hardest thing I have ever done is still winning my fight with cancer.  As I struggle to get up those hills, I will think about those last radiation treatments that stripped me of the ability to digest food and completely zapped my energy.  I will never forget the day I laid down on the floor in my office at 2:00 in the afternoon because I literally could not keep my eyes open and was not even sure it was safe to drive myself home.  I will think about the chemo that zapped my hair and took my femininity.  I will remember the weeks of recovery from the surgery that leaves me with a scarred abdomen.  I will remember that moment when the doctors said their was no more that could be done for my dad.  And I will remember those last days that my mom's once vibrant body, now riddled with tumors, lay in her bed, in my childhood bedroom as she succumbed to the deadly power of this terrible disease.  I will continue to fight for a cure!  

Pelotonia has been a tremendous support and inspiration through this very difficult time.  What has been an even bigger support and inspiration are my girls.  I have developed an incredible group of women that inspire me, push me to do more than I ever thought possible and have been there for me at some of my darkest times.  It's hard to imagine my life without each one of them.  It is interesting how the right people come into your life at the exact moment you need them the most.