As My World Turns

A good friend of ours (Louise) was told recently that her cancer has returned, and she needed to start chemo again. Long ago I fondly nicknamed her “Chatty” because she would call and ask for my wife just because she wanted to chat. She and her husband (Don) have traveled with us to many places (England, France, Spain, Portugal), etc., and we have always enjoyed their company.

A few years ago, she started the yearly tradition of inviting us to their home in January for brunch. It became one of our favorite things to do, good food and good conversation with old friends, how could it get any better? It couldn’t. But it could get worse, and it did.

The news that she needed to start chemo again saddened us, not because we feel she can’t win this battle, but because we regret having to see our dear friend struggle so much.   It has been said that your five best friends are about the same age as you are and probably have the same eating habits. I don’t know if that’s 100% true, but it is, in my opinion, pretty darn close.

My five best friends enjoy eating out at least once a week, going to church on Sunday, going out to a good movie, watching live entertainment and engaging in good conversation. My five best friends enjoy my company as much as I enjoy theirs, I hope. And, as you have probably figured out by now, Don & Louise are two of my five best friends. My friend has been fighting this battle for some time now and she shows no signs of defeat, nor pessimism.  I may not be one of her top five friends, but I am one of her most loyal supporters. She knows that she can always count on my wife and I to be there for her.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow said, “A torn jacket is soon mended; but hard words bruise the heart of a child.”

Being told that our friend’s cancer has returned has certainly bruised our hearts.