While we are on the heavy stuff…

I have been switching up the topics of my posts and jumping timelines as we go, writing about the current events we’re living through, mixed up with the past events we have experienced. I try to balance the heaviness of each post as well so that I don’t get so tired of writing about the sad and bad. I have one last heavy one to share in this little cycle. 

This post is actually not about ALS. It is a shift to another beast of a disease, cancer. 

One month after Rich’s diagnosis, I was driving to one of my last midwife appointments, eight days from my due date. It was a nice day in March, I think. I recall driving with my windows down at some point. On that drive I received this news:

My mom had been dealing with some weird health issues, starting back in January. It began with some stomach issues and moved into some breathing issues. It was all very bizarre for someone who I would consider to be an overall healthy person.

Well, it turns out she had stage IV cancer. The worst stage out there. My dad was the lucky guy who got to break the news to me. On this exact day, we didn’t have all of the answers, but we knew it was cancer and we knew it was bad. 

I got off the phone with my dad (this may have been when I rolled my windows down, still driving) and immediately called Rich to tell him. I pulled myself together and went into my midwife appointment. My blood pressure was high (are you surprised?!) I told the midwife my story and we decided to do a bit more testing to check on the baby. All I wanted to do was go home and hug Rich and our son. When the testing was all clear, I got to do just that. 

I hate telling this story, because it still blows my mind that we experienced all of that in such a short period of time. 2020 has been challenging, that is for sure, but 2019 was something else for our family.

Those sad and bad months ended as spring arose and our daughter was born. She was very much awaited, going a little past her due date. She made her appearance around 9:30pm on April 2nd, thanks to a gentle induction, walking around Barnes and Noble, sitting in the Kelly’s Roast Beef Drive Thru (while in labor!), and eating a burger with loaded fries while bouncing on an exercise ball at the birth center.

Even though she was not feeling well, my mom made the trek to the hospital with my dad that night to meet their granddaughter. I was very surprised to see them so late that night. The next day, I learned why, as my mom was admitted to MGH the next morning and had her major surgery to remove the cancer on April 8th. It was a long road of chemotherapy and a slow but sure recovery. Amazingly, she is now in remission and is getting stronger every day! 

And now for a quote from Frodo, that describes well how I felt in the beginning of 2019, and at times, how I still feel, “I feel thin, sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread.” Although times are different these days, they would look plenty different for us, pandemic or not. I feel very fortunate to have my family all together with (hopefully) no more major health surprises to come. Is there a quota for such things?! Because if there is we must have met it!!  

All of this being said, my mom turned 60 yesterday, and she is continuing to kick cancer’s butt! Her strength and resilience (not to mention, her incredibly high pain tolerance) are things I look up to greatly. 

Taking life one day at a time,

Leah