The summer of 2019. . .

On our 25th wedding anniversary (an hour before we were celebrating with our closest friends and family), I heard the words “you have breast cancer.” Shaking, I couldn’t speak and handed the phone to my husband. 

Like many, I missed my annual mammogram, but a friend of mine bravely posted her diagnosis on social media earlier that June. Her words guided me to make my appointment even though I was in the middle of a move down south and didn’t have a doctor on record. 

But incredible people helped.

And I found my way to a great team at Emory University, a research university in Atlanta, Georgia.

I wrote a lot during this time. What follows on this blog is a bit of my story.

UPDATE: Cancer is such a nasty word. I don’t want to leave you hanging, please know both my friend and I are doing well — a little more than 3 years cancer free! I know that is not always the way these journeys go and every day I try to stay grounded and grateful. 

So much has happened since that cancer diagnosis — heartache, job losses, multiple moves, but also so much incredible opportunity and personal growth.