Thank you for inviting me in

Valentines Day 2010 - the best Valentines Day I have ever had. I received a plethora of gifts and presents from friends and family filled with goodies for me and my family. It was like Christmas Day all over again and I had so much fun opening each and every gift I received! One of the packages I received was from two special college friends. The package included a little album of index cards written with carefully selected bible verses. Some of the verses were near and dear to my heart throughout this past year. And some of the verses were new ones offering much needed encouragement.

Yesterday afternoon I wanted to spend some time reading the Bible and in prayer to help me through the anxiety I have been experiencing these past couple of days. I remembered this book of verses my friends gave me, began reading the first verse and stopped there. This verse was exactly what I needed to hear and it could not have been more perfect for what I am going through at this time.

Philippians 1:6 "Be confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

God has been doing great things in my life this past year. This verse was a great reminder that he will continue to do great things including helping me get through this battle with cancer. After these past couple of days, it was very comforting to me to read this verse. But this verse says so much more...not only has God began a good work in me, but through me as well. God has used my cancer to impact others. It is very humbling to know that through this blog God used me to touch your lives. That was not the purpose of me starting a blog. I was using it as a tool to communicate my thoughts, feelings and progress to family and friends. Little did I know that hundreds, if not thousands of you would read my blog faithfully. I feel honored that my experience has impacted and changed the lives of so many. This gives wonderful meaning to all of the pain and suffering I have endured this past year. Thank you for inviting me into your lives.

My anxiety is getting a little better. Every now and then I have waves of fear of the unknown overcome me, but I am getting hopeful again that this cancer is gone and will stay gone. It just takes me a few days to calm down after I have a discouraging doctor appointment.

I am still battling the infection in my face. Today I started on a nasal irrigation antibiotic so I am hoping that will nip the infection in the bud. It has been wonderful not wearing the boot on my leg...however walking is difficult and I feel very unstable. I won't be walking around the block anytime soon, but I am able to do a lot more around the house now that I am free from the walker. Yesterday, I was able to drive my car for the first time in a couple of months. Today, I was able to go to Caribou have coffee with my sister and Kendall. A weekly tradition Kendall and I started years ago and have not been able to do it for quite some time. She was so excited to spend time with mom and have her favorite treat...lemon bread from Caribou. And even better, her Aunt Cheri was there too. It is such a great feeling knowing that I am not confined to the house anymore. I am not ready to drive a long distance, but a trip to the store is easy enough on my leg.

Please continue to pray for the infection in my face and that the cancer is gone and will stay gone. I continue to need your prayers and encouragement!

Thank you all!

Sue

PS - I am over half way to my goal of raising $1,000 for the Relay for Life fight against cancer. My fight is not over and I want to do whatever I can to prevent this from happening to someone else. I am starting to realize that cancer is so much more common than we think. Too many people have been afflicted by this horrible disease. I never ever thought I would be be diagnosed with cancer. But it can happen. Please help me get there my donating any amount you can. Click on the link at the top of my blog to visit my Relay for Life website and to donate! Thank you!