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Lemon Drop Pie

~ Motherhood after breast cancer

Lemon Drop Pie

Monthly Archives: October 2011

Singing Praises {Simple Moments, Bigger Picture}

20 Thursday Oct 2011

Posted by Ginny Marie in faith

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Bigger Picture, music

Yesterday was the definition of a blustery day. It was rainy and windy and COLD. I had spent the day running here and there; I dropped off Lily and Emmy at their respective schools, I went to my MOPS meeting, I ran errands and picked up Emmy from a playdate. When evening finally came and I had made dinner, the girls were settling down for bed. The last thing I wanted to do was go back outside. However, I had one more obligation left.

I rushed to fill the dishwasher, throw the unfolded laundry off my bed and back into a basket in case I got home late, and put pajamas on Emmy. I smoothed out their unmade beds, which in our morning rush we rarely make. I laid out pajamas for Lily, who was reading with her daddy.

Emmy trailed behind me as I gathered together my shoes, purse and coat. “But I don’t want you to go, Mommy!” Deep inside, I didn’t want to go, either. I gave her a big hug and a kiss.

Gently pushing her toward Ed, I said, “Go read a book with Daddy,” and gave Lily her hug and kiss.

I drove toward church, almost hypnotized by the radio and the drizzling rain. I was tired and really didn’t want to be out and about again.

As I opened the door to the back of the building, I could hear the choir rehearsing already. They finished singing the hymn as I sat down in my spot. Our director stood up and taught us a breathing technique he learned at a conference. “Breath down low,” he said. As I drew in a breath, I felt pinpricks of pain all over my upper body from all the stress I was holding in. They made me not want to breath at all.

But slowly, carefully, I began to take slow, deep breaths and the pinpricks slowly started to ease.

We started to rehearse in earnest, first and second sopranos blending together, then adding altos, tenors and basses. The pinpricks were disappearing.

“Take out your Bach books,” our director said.

Bach. I love singing Bach!

Jesus, priceless treasure, source of purest pleasure, truest friend to me!

Our voices raised, harmonies flowed, and our praises lifted up above us, along with the last of my aches and pains.

When rehearsal was over, the blustery day had turned into a blustery night. As I drove home, pop songs were playing on the radio. After singing such joyous, praise-filled music, the stuff on the radio seemed lifeless and trite. But that didn’t matter. My heart was full and light again, and I was looking forward to coming home to my husband and kissing my children in their beds.

Simple BPM

Click here to hear the melody to “Jesus, Priceless Treasure.”

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I Joined the Army of Women — Now What?

18 Tuesday Oct 2011

Posted by Ginny Marie in breast cancer

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Army of Women, research

I almost missed the study that was e-mailed to me called “Breast Cancer Risk in Young Women Study.” In fact, I did miss it until my sister forwarded her e-mail to me.  As I read all the study requirements, I realized I qualified!

I clicked the RSVP button: “YES! Sign me up!” and entered my information. Army of Women sent me a detailed email, telling me what to expect. Soon after, I heard from the research coordinator, and she gave me more information.

Do you think I’m nuts when I tell you how excited I felt? Just the thought that my blood would be involved in a breast cancer research study gave me thrills!

I already had made my oncologist’s appointment, and so I was scheduled to have my annual blood test on Monday. My kit arrived in the mail with some forms to sign and two empty vials. Now I began to get nervous. Would the phlebotomist give me a hard time about filling these two extra test tubes? I hoped not.

As I signed into the lab Monday morning, I looked around at the full waiting room. After spending years of waiting in similar rooms at hospitals and doctors’ offices, I could tell who was in the middle of chemo, who was accompanying a loved one for support, who was there for routine blood work like myself. I thought I was the nervous one with my two test tubes in a box, but other people were fidgeting anxiously, waiting for their name to be called. I figured out that the wait was about half an hour. Not bad, considering some of the waits I’ve sat through while seeing certain specialists. Some of those waits were spent shivering in a paper gown while sitting in an exam room–I’d much rather be fully dressed in a waiting room! As much as a veteran as I am at the waiting room game, I forgot to bring a book. It’s a habit I’ve grown out of now that my appointments have stretched out to a year in between visits.

My name was called, and into the lab I went. As I explained to the phlebotomist what I needed her to do, she was very kind and filled my two extra vials with no problem.

As I sent off my package with the FedEx man, I was so glad to be a part of something bigger than me. Being part of a research project goes beyond taking care of myself; I’m doing my part in the future care of women just like me. Women and men just like you.

There are so many neat research studies; from cancer-sniffing dogs to using meditation; Army of Women is helping these studies move forward by finding the right people for the job!

Are you one of them? Join Army of Women at www.armyofwomen.org today to find out!

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