Friendship

I was surrounded by my friends and family this week/weekend. Not completely by design but through a serious of planned events culminating in mostly a 48-hour period. Included in these events were:

• A casual dinner at the Taylor's - a pot luck last Tuesday - the chili was wonderful!;
• A fantastic dinner at HASH HOUSE A Go Go (which Steve lovingly deemed Claim Jumper on crack) with two of our closest friends, Jennifer and Andrew Schlesier;
• A brisk morning walk with one of the smartest women I know, my friend Lisa;
• A fantastic afternoon of pampering and friends, making me feel like "Queen for a Day", put on by Danielle Kremer and Barbara Miller - WOW! is all I have to say;
• All topped off by a SOUPER Party at the Garcia's, complete with tequila and Girl Scout cookies.

I am a seriously lucky woman with seriously awesome friends and family. Steve and I are both lucky. (Steve was also treated to an afternoon at Hooley's with Jim Miller and a clan of guys that mean the world to both of us.)

Tomorrow, my mom will be taking me to chemo session number four. I have a nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach. Not so much for the process of chemo itself but because of the inevitable side effects to follow. The unknown is what scares me now. There are many unknowns these days.

However, when I am with my friends and family, my mind is at ease, or at least shift gears. I feel like I am a part of something important, a chain of support that extends past my struggle with cancer. A chain of support that has always been there, but its importance has been suppressed by the mundane of the every day, where I may have been just too bothered to partake. Ironically, now I am hanging on. In the end, I know what ever happens on my journey, this chain is what will save me and it will be this same chain that supports my friends through their current and future struggles. Now, that I see how integral each link in the chain is, how we are all connected, I do not think I will ever let go again.

Below is a picture of Madison taken yesterday by my friend Stephani Dennis. It is so beautiful that I wanted to share it as a part of this blog entry. Please visit Stephani's website for more of her work. I hope you love it as much as I do!