5 years ago today

As long as I live, I will never forget May 7, 2003. At 7:30 pm, I got a call from my Surgeon. "I wanted to make sure your husband is coming with you to your appointment tomorrow." Hearing that was all I needed. I don't even remember the rest of that conversation. I just knew that the biopsy I had taken wasn't nothing, it was Cancer. That was the day my life changed forever. I was 33 years old, I had been married for 2 1/2 years and Gary and I were desperate to start a family. The last thing I expected was Cancer. I went through months of grueling Chemotherapy and surgeries. Days would pass that I couldn't lift my head off of my pillow and couldn't even drink water. My friends and family were so wonderful to me and I will never forget that.

The day after my appt with my Surgeon, we saw an Oncologist. The first thing he said to me was "I don't think it's too late." He also told me conceiving a child was out of the question. At that point, I thought my life may as well have been over. I sobbed and sobbed, thinking we could never have a child and Gary promised me we would. I never forgot that. I think that hope helped me get through those horrible days.

Who knows where our lives would have taken us if we didn't experience Cancer. Would Sara be in our lives? Probably not. We had looked into adoption before my illness and considered China. China is out of the question once you've had Cancer. Actually, we thought all adoption was. I never really believed things happen for a reason, but maybe in this case, it's true. Maybe if I hadn't had Cancer, I would have had a different career and never met my dear friend who encouraged me to explore adoption, even with my past illness. I know it may sound crazy, but it was all worth it because now we have our Sara. She was definitely chosen for us. Life is way too short and full of surprises. Anyone "thinking" about anything should "just do it".