Saturday, April 19, 2008

An Afternoon By the Falls

This afternoon, we went to the waterfall and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Today was a gorgeous day. And fortunately the waterfall is at the edge of the property so it's basically in our backyard. Listening to the water and watching the kids play & swim was a real treat.

After we got back, my neighbor called to say hello and offered to make another macrobiotic meal for us. I told her that we just got back from the waterfall. I told her about how free I felt for the first time in so long. She had some difficulty understanding me and asked me to repeat myself. I told her I was trying not to cry. But the tears just started flowing because as I spoke to her, I realized that while we were at the water, I had forgotten about having cancer. I was actually just sitting at the base of a beautiful waterfall with my family, temporarily oblivious to cancer and chemotherapy and radiation and everything else that has led me to live such a very different life than the one I lived not so long ago.

The tears are still flowing down my cheeks as I write this. It just keeps hitting me - for a few hours this afternoon, I didn't have cancer. We were just a normal family enjoying a sunny Saturday afternoon by the falls.

3 comments:

  1. I pray that you have many more "cancer free" days in the future.

    I am proud that you are such a strong man that you have not let this disease define you. After my interactions with you, I always walk away feeling as if my life is enriched having you as a friend.

    Hurry up and heal!

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  2. Moments of joy, like those you mention in this post, are what make me feel alive and help me to accept the more difficult aspects of my cancer.

    Thank you for sharing your joy.

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  3. Bert, Those moments that we can forget about the cancer are real gifts, but it is sad that we have them so rarely. And I echo your anger at all of these treatments and procedures... it can wear us down if we let it.

    I think that talking with our partners and letting our feelings out as they come is part of the healing that we can do for ourselves. And it makes the rest of this more bearable.

    My thoughts are with you. I hope you can spend more time at the waterfall today, because it's going to be another beautiful afternoon.

    Take care!

    Maria Brown

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