The Road Less Traveled

This past month has been difficult in many ways. As always, I am keenly aware of so many families impacted by childhood cancer. The last few weeks have seemed to be overwhelmingly full of children who have lost the battle. I have felt heartbroken, and honestly, without words, for families that are facing the unimaginable in having their child taken by this monster.

A child diagnosed with cancer...a road I never imagined I would travel on, yet like anyone else on this road, it's a place you are thrust without choice, and certainly without any turning back. For some, that road takes them on a longer journey with hills and valleys along the way, that seems to go on forever. For others, it may be a journey that ends with a life taken entirely too soon. Everyone's journey is uniquely theirs, yet a common bond exists. Gratefully, our journey has been one that appears to have a a healthy, happy ending. One without too much "interruption" when looking at it on a larger scale. However, I believe that once you are sent down that road...no matter the outcome, life will never be the same again. "Normal" life as most know it will never be thought of as "just normal" to you, as it becomes a treasured blessing, after knowing what it was like to wish for and be willing to give anything for your child to have "normal" again. Perspective about so many aspects of life change. I actually look at that perspective change as a blessing. I know I would not look through those lenses without being thrown down that road.

Still, it is honestly hard sometimes to not feel guilty that my child is doing well, when I hear the devastating stories of others whose road took a different turn. Overall, it is just a reminder of where we once were and where we have come. It reminds me to stop and thank God for allowing our story to be what it is, and to pray relentlessly for other families who are still in the thick of it. I don't doubt that God uses those who have "walked a mile in their shoes" to minister to and comfort others on the same road, in a way that only they can. I have stopped trying to question and wonder about the "why's." Rather, my focus has been on continual thankfulness to a faithful God, doing whatever I can to help someone else along the way, and praying that my life perspective never changes even though my road less traveled turned out okay.

Cooper helping me get some Courage Kits together for some siblings of children fighting cancer