And so this is Christmas . . . . .

Remember that song?

        And so this is Christmas, and what have you done?

          another year older, a new one just begun. . . . .

For so many years our lives slid by in the busy-ness of being a wife, a mum, a daughter, a friend. All those ordinary little things that we took for granted and just didn't give much attention to. Things like our health and the expectation that of course we'd be around next Christmas. Then we got stopped in our tracks by those unexpected words "you've got breast cancer". I don't know how you reacted, maybe fear, perhaps anger, grief, disbelief, your thoughts spinning out of control. Somehow treatment seems to take over our lives, we focus on surgery, chemo, rads or reconstruction. For some of us its the dread that bc has spread and what does that mean for our life expectancy?

Its so easy to take our eyes off those things in life that really matter. Like the family and friends who stand by us in challenging times, the safe haven of our homes, the faithfulness of my dog who's always pleased to see me - even when chemo means he cant lick me , the joy of returning to work, how grateful I am to be making a recovery to a new me after all that the last year has held.

No matter where you are in this process of bc there is still so much in life that is  GOOD. Don't be fooled into thinking you are just the sum of your experiences. You are alive and there is so much to enjoy, so much to hope for. So go ahead and hope for the end of treatment, hope for better days ahead. But don't forget to enjoy the rich goodness that surrounds you today, keep on living every day with hope in your heart.

Wishing you all the peace, joy and hope of Christmas,

with love, Tracey xXx