Carved apples for Halloween (photo and carving: Lorie Sheffer)
I’m very open about the fact that I have an anxiety disorder. I manage it very well for the most part. What I’ve noticed is that most people, even those who don’t have an actual disorder, tend to worry about things over which they have no control. I suppose it’s human nature. Just this week, I listened to three friends who talked about a huge worry they had. While all three situations were very serious, all of them turned out just fine. It’s difficult NOT to worry, sometimes. But perhaps we should all keep in mind this favorite quote in those times of worry:
My life has been full of misfortunes, most of which have never happened. – Michel de Montaigne
Lorie Sheffer one week after her Son’s White Coat ceremony (Photo: Gary Sheffer?)
Breasts are much prettier than colons. Trust me, I’ve seen both. A colon looks a bit like a garden hose made of raw liver. While there is such a thing as a tasteful and rather sexy display of décolletage, there really is no socially acceptable way to display the colon. Breasts are used to feed children, sell products, and attract the opposite sex. Colons are full of, well, you know.
“Cancer” is a word that none of us want to hear. We often gather together to form a kind of army against possible invasion. We have awareness campaigns, we see ribbons on cars and clothing and packages of food. We’ve all seen the bumper stickers with the “cute” sayings like “Save the TaTas” and “Feel Your Boobies”. But there are certain things we just don’t discuss in polite company. We don’t talk about bowel function. It’s gross. We aren’t supposed to talk about things like shape of bowel movements, excess gas, abdominal pain and blood in the toilet bowl. And so we are silent. We’ve all heard the sophomoric jokes about “silent but deadly” in reference to those quiet passages of especially odorous emissions, but in this case our silence literally can be deadly.
Colon cancer was the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States in 2010. It begins with abnormal polyps that take from TEN to FIFTEEN YEARS to develop into a malignancy. A colonoscopy is a test that can PREVENT us from developing cancer. PREVENT. While it can also catch cancer in its early and most treatable stages, it can PREVENT us from ever having the disease in the first place! When then test is being done, if any polyps are seen they can be removed rather easily right then and there and sent to the lab. Most are benign. But if they are the type that will eventually become malignant, they are now GONE.
I watched my grandfather die of colon cancer. I watched my brother- my only sibling- go through surgeries and chemo for colon cancer. Thankfully his outcome was good. Still, the process is not something anyone wants to deal with. I met a young woman who had just graduated from college and was ready to begin her graduate studies when she was diagnosed with colon cancer. She is still only in her mid twenties and struggles with the aftermath of her surgeries and treatments.
If everyone would learn the symptoms, if everyone would get the screening, this could be a disease could in fact not only be taken out of second place, it could be almost totally eliminated.
Life can change in an instant (photo: Lorie Sheffer)
February 11th, 1996. That was the day the congenital arteriovenous malformation of the left basal ganglia ruptured. In terms we can all understand, that was the day of the massive stroke.
I kept the MRI photos that were taken a few weeks after. When I first saw them I had to excuse myself to go throw up in the bathroom. I was told that the clear area of film is the clot left from the bleed. The neurosurgeon told me it was the size of a jumbo grade egg.
Eighteen years later, I showed some friends the film. “Life isn’t fair”, one of them commented. Eighteen years of regular physical therapy. Eighteen years of struggling to use his right hand; of people asking why he’s limping; of word finding problems.
“Life isn’t fair.”
I didn’t realize my friend was referring to my husband and me. I thought he was talking about those who didn’t get the chance to work on their recovery. I thought he was talking about those who didn’t survive the assault to their brain. I guess I was too busy being grateful.
Sugar and salt look remarkable similar, yet yield opposite results
Why is it that some people seem to confuse “mistake” with “conscious choice”?
It’s a mistake to accidentally grab the salt, thinking it is sugar, thus ruining an entire batch of cookies. It’s a mistake to call someone by the wrong name because you honestly were confused, or to unintentionally mistake a person for his or her look-alike sibling. Taking a wrong turn and getting lost is a mistake. Mistakes are unintentional.
When someone steals, lies or cheats, they are making a conscious decision to do so. At some point, they have given themselves permission. They didn’t make a mistake; they knew exactly what they were doing. The mistake may have been thinking they wouldn’t be caught, or thinking they wouldn’t regret it, or thinking there would be no consequences.
