April 2014

HOPE

Written April 29th @ 4:10pm

It is a rainy cloudy day in Iowa and a perfect time to write a little update.  Where to begin…

Since a lot of you have been following Crystal’s Story you know that March 27^th was the day Crystal was diagnosed.  So…I wanted to make sure that we celebrated.  It is a new birthday for her!  I must admit, I was not sure if we should be talking about it or celebrating it, but then I thought why not?  Look what we have overcome as a family.  Look what Crystal has gone through in this last year!  Beating Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer!  Look at the lives she has touched, and the many people she has helped through her own journey.  Happy Birthday Crystal!  We love you…

Our family was invited as a guest to the American Cancer Society Gala on Saturday, April 5^th.  It was a beautiful event.  Some of our Tiny and Li’l Spirits performed and we watched those dancers put smiles on many faces, from our table.  The ACS did a catwalk for their event, something a little different.  The runway walk was for the survivors, the families helping their loved ones and some walked in memory of the ones that have lost their life to cancer.  It was a powerful feeling to see Crystal walk it.  It was touching to see the walk in person; it was heartbreaking to see how many lives have been touched by cancer.  We were thankful to be a part of it and to see so much money was being raised for Cancer Research.  That is so very very important.

The next day, was Courtney’s 19^th birthday.  Oh how wonderful that Courtney could enjoy her birthday with her sisters/family.  Last year it was a feeling of guilt to celebrate her birthday when we were getting ready for a major surgery with Crystal.  What a difference a year can be.

Then it was off to California, which was wonderful!  The Ellen Show was a blast.  I must say you work up a sweat just watching her show, you dance between every break.

To be at the Ellen Show on the same day (April 9^th) that Crystal was fighting for her life a year ago is emotional.  So you try not to think about it, but sitting in the audience, getting ready for a 2pm taping your mind begins to think, gosh last year we were waiting for updates while she was in surgery.  Your stomach was turning; you were getting her room ready with all of the stuff people had given her for that moment she came back from surgery.  You are hoping that everything is going to be alright, I was talking to God and my grandmother at almost every moment.  WoW, what a year!  We lived through that.  How did we do it?  Well…with all of your prayers and supportive calls, cards, emails, texts, gifts, messages, fund-raisers and I would have to say, praying to God.

When we had arrived in California, the first stop was Huntington Beach.  We ate at Duke’s, one of my favorite places and I asked Crystal.  Have you thanked God for this moment?  “She said yes, I already did.”  I smiled and felt so proud at that moment.  I am so thankful for that relaxing vacation with my daughter, those memories that we made.  The fact that my beautiful kind hearted mother paid for it and that my husband was home making sure that our other two daughters were safe.  That is a true gift and I happy that I can see it.  I am so very fortunate that I am close to my daughters, that I can enjoy their company as a friend, yet know that I am their mother first.

Getting home from our trip, celebrating Easter with family, going back to your daily routine is a blessing.  What does our future hold for us?

Crystal is very busy with finishing school; she is to graduate from Kirkwood Community College in May.  No, she does not want to walk.  But I think the fact that she has continued school with such a life changing event and always looks for positive in her life truly deserves to be recognized, even though she feels behind.

As for some of your messages…here is an update on the family:

Courtney is enjoying school.  She actually juggles work, school, boxing, dance and a night life pretty darn good I must say.

Cassidy is feeling better every week.  Cassidy just had prom and you can see by her photos how much she has grown up.  She is currently in golf and dying for school to be over with.

Rod, does very well in a house full of girls.  He is very busy with work and has recently said, “I may not talk about Crystal’s Cancer but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t bother me.”

As a family, you hear the word Cancer more than you ever did before or do we recognize it more because it has touched our life?  When someone we know has just learned of cancer, they share their story with us.  Lately, it seems like so much has been going on around us.  You find yourself being thankful for the cards that you were dealt with.

Crystal will not be the last one diagnosed with Cancer in our circle of family and friends.  There will be more.  There will be more sad stories.  And what is the word that helps us all?  It is HOPE, such a powerful word, a word that is actually a gift.  When you are filled with hope, it keeps you going.  It keeps you fighting whether it is for your life or a goal you want to achieve.  HOPE is what we all need.