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Lemonade
In the category of ‘making lemonade from lemons’ we decided to use our 6 hour flight delay from Melbourne to our advantage today. The Tutankhamun exhibition was on in the city and we thought if we caught a taxi we’d have a good amount of time to spend with it, get back to the hotel,…
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After the treatment
Every day I feel myself returning more to a functional life. For several days after I first got home I was anxious to make sure I didn’t just close off all that I have experienced and move ahead as if nothing had happened, as if I have finished ‘the treatment’ and now could forget about…
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Being home
One of the best things about getting home again was the smell. There was a sweetness in the air, but not flowery perfume. It was the sweet smell of the ‘familiar’. Perhaps it was the absence of ‘institutional smell’ and medical potions and soaps as well, but it resonated with me the instant I walked…
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There are no ‘Coincidences’
For those of you who don’t believe in coincidence, as I do not, you will be further convinced as I relate to you how my final day of treatment unfolded. For those of you who think coincidence is an accidental event, you may think again. I left the world of institutional living behind and we…
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Penultimate Day
The penultimate day. The penultimate treatment. There were numerous loose ends to tie up today, pretty much the kinds of things you do before you go on vacation. Clean out the fridge, pack a bag, drop things off to people and say some goodbyes. But I’m not going on a holiday, I’m closing a chapter…
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A leap of faith
If you have never tried soft shell crab and you like seafood, you should try it. Don’t ask exactly what it is, you may not like the answer. Just take the leap of faith and try some. I tried it for the first time here in Darwin, back in May when I was here for…
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Journey to Nostalgia
We started the day off earlier than one of us realised. I heard Don get up and he was not particularly quiet, so it woke me. I looked at the clock which said 5.34. That was late enough that I knew I wouldn’t get back to sleep so when he finished in the bathroom I…
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What I’ve learned (so far) from Cancer
Today was (hopefully) my last day to ride the bus. Don had to attend a meeting this morning and so was not available to take me. As there was about a 40 minute wait for the bus, and then a further wait for treatment I had couple of final conversations with other cancer patients. Both…
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The ‘Pink Thing’
Today was the finish of my ‘basic 25’ radiology treatments. I celebrated with a lavish and luxurious, top of the line, pink and sateen… nap. The pink and sateen part was my comfortable little breast care pillow that eased me into slumberland. I confess that the first time I saw it, I had to stifle…
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“You wouldn’t worry about what others thought of you, if only you knew how little they do”
When we arrived at the oncology centre today, there were about 6 or 8 people gathered right in the doorway leading inside, and they barely left room for us to squeeze by to get in for treatment. It was a media group from Channel 9 and they were happily chatting away about their own priorities…
ardysez 