everyday is a journey.
I was deeply impressed
by what a gardener once
said to me concerning his
work. "I feel, sir," he said,
"when I am growing the
flowers or rearing the
vegetables, that I am having
a share in creation." I
thought it a very noble way
of regarding his work.
--J. H. Jowett.
Ovarian cancer, I definitely never gave it a thought back in 2007. I was busy living my life, arguing about things that didn't matter. Everything was a rush and everything was more important than relationships with others. I was angry at the world, at my family and definitely at how my life was turning out. Being happy was something I had no idea how to be.
I can admit all of that now. At that time, I didn't realize just how angry and miserable I was. I thought I had everything in check and felt that life was as good as it would get. This was life. I couldn't have been more wrong.
It took me a few years into my diagnosis to understand what ovarian cancer represented. I was really quite ignorant on the issue of my cancer. I didn't understand any of the cancer terminology. After visiting an ovarian cancer support website, I realized how naive and uneducated I've been compared to others.
Everyone knew their CA125 scores and I didn't even know what that was! In reality, I felt embarrassed about my lack of knowledge. How can I talk to others about this cancer if I don't know anything about it? My advice to fellow cancer survivors? Learn all you can about your type of cancer. Don't be like me, educate yourself right away.
When people meet me for the first time, they are surprised at my positive attitude towards my cancer. To them, "I look fantastic, unlike a victim" and they marvel how accepting I am of my disease. Little do they know, all of this didn't happen overnight. It took all of these ten years to get me here. They're seeing a good part of me, but not the whole part.
People ask me advice in regards to many things cancer. I can only speak from my own experience. There are a few things I can offer as solid advice to anyone that is going through any type of illness.
1. Learn all you can about your disease.
2. Don't push people away from you, but draw them to you.
3. Accept all offers of help no matter how small.
4. Take control of your health and do everything to become as healthier as you can possible be.
5. Don't stop living life.
I don't hate my cancer. I honestly believe it has helped me become the best that I can be. It brought it out to the surface the life I was meant to live. How can I hate that?
Have a blessed day everyone.
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