Yesterday was my ten-year cancer anniversary. Those who have been in my shoes understand that it’s a day of reflection. A day where you review all the milestones that have occurred in the last decade and wonder what will happen next.
A few to mention:
(1) I was on national television.
(2) I got to live in New York for a while. I survived the subway and tag sales and bad Mexican food.
(3) I have been to many cancer screens, visits, and appointments, but my cancer has not metastasized. Survival is just as good as the next test. So far I’m hanging in there.
(4) I had many interactions with Martha Stewart.
(5) Got to eat at a fancy NYC restaurant with Donald Trump
(6) I wrote a children’s book on contract for a company in California
(7) We had a baby girl, who is so precious
(8) I had a life-threatening infection after the birth of our little girl. I was in the hospital for a month. I survived.
(9) I wrote a novel about the extraordinary friendship between two women. One woman undergoes a battle with cancer, which was cathartic and memorable to write about. Part of it’s very funny, and I like funny. After tears and late nights and edits and hundreds of pages thrown out, I did it. I survived the novel-writing process.
(10) I got on facebook and connected with old friends I hadn’t heard from in years
(11) We had a baby boy. So love that little guy.
(12) My heart stopped right before the c-section when my son was born, as I was lying on the table. They had to do resuscitation measures. Miraculously, I survived.
(13) My husband and I went to Maine, and as we were on a yacht off the coastline, I was so glad he married me so many years ago
(14) I worked as General Counsel to a large medical group, a job I never thought I’d attain and was so thrilled to have. Being a lawyer is quite fun.
(15) I quit said wonderful job as described above to stay home
(16) We moved into a wonderful limestone house. We have a garden and land to roam. Next up is chickens.
(17) I started a blog
(18) Our house was struck by lightening. We survived.
(20) My novel is not yet published, but I’m still trying
By His mercy and grace, I keep surviving. Here’s to the next decade. Let it be as rich and wonderful as this one. Let me live every day with compassion and curiosity. After all, I want to do more than survive. I want to sing. I want to write. I want to thrive.
Stellar decade! May the next one involve as many blessings.
I always enjoy reading your material and this was no exception. What a scary yet fun filled 10 years you’ve had.
Hopefully you’ll get your novel posted (maybe as an e-book?) because I know there are a lot of people out there who would enjoy reading it.
Good luck and keep up the good work.
Thanks so much! 🙂
Yowza – you cram a whole lotta living in a decade! That’s the best way to do it, I say. 🙂 Happy for your 10 year anniversary to reflect on where you have been and where you are going. I’ll probably do a similar style post for my 10th wedding anniversary coming up, but it will include far less near-death or lightening bolt experiences, (well, unless some pretty crazy stuff happens between now and June 22nd.)
I don’t recommend all the near-death stuff. And the lightning? At some point my friends start to think I just make this stuff up. God really does have a good sense of humor. And I must have a team of guardian angels. “The alarm is buzzing for Amanda Hill again,” I can see the chief angel say. “For goodness sakes. That’s the third time this week.”
That Maine trip I referenced was for our ten-year anniversary. Blew our honeymoon out of the water! Funny how time, children, and overcoming many obstacles can make a marriage stronger and richer with time. Congrats on your upcoming anniversary. What a blessing.
I hope your next decade is filled with great writing (selfishly, so I can read it!)
Haha – now there’s a novel. Forget Hogwarts or Vampires (that’s Twilight, right?) someone needs to right a collection of stories about guardian angels and the people they follow (but done better than that Nicolas Cage/Meg Ryan movie from the 90’s.)
I love Maine – but since we live right next door in New Hampshire, we took a Caribbean cruise in February instead of staying local (and as a wedding photographer, getting a week off during wedding season would have been a bit of a tight squeeze, so we celebrated early!) Where did you stay?
And yes, writing, that is in the plans for sometime in the future. I had thought that I’d get to it during my “off” season, but apparently it just took me a long time to unwind from last season. Now I’m ready to write, but have to get back into shooting mode.
God Has been With you All Your Life, Watching Waiting, He has a aBig Job for you to do, He has Blessed you in a mighty Way.