Just for today, I wonder, “Is there a life AFTER cancer”? Or even closer to my thoughts, “Is there such a thing as an AFTER cancer?” I think back to 2025, and it all seems like a blur to me. I’ve learned something so very important. “A lump is never just a lump,” I remember feeling ecstatic because I DON’T have breast cancer! Then again, I would think, “I do have lymphoma.”
Last year alone, I’ve had a few surgical procedures, a few rounds of chemo, and a whole month’s worth of daily radiation. I’ve been bald, gained weight, and have had injections of stuff that made my body hurt more than I would like to describe. I’ve had bursts of energy, felt drained and on my knees, smiled, laughed, prayed, and cried until I can’t do it any longer.
I thought I was rid of it all. So, I went through all of the motions, the blood panels, the scans, and the dreams of actually having the brain cells to finish the book I began writing. Well, I almost got there. NOW, apparently, I have lymph node stuff going on in the center of my chest. (I decided “stuff” is a medical and technical word). Can I get honest here? One of the more irritating things is my brain function. I’m a thinker, a discerner, a spiritual conduit for information and Light. I love that about myself, but over the last year, it seems like I can’t remember smaller things like my zip code! I find this SO irritating!
Yep, I have more to endure, because a lump is not just a lump. Now in my life, if it is lumpy, it is “a suspect.” It can be an invader that needs investigation, or, even harder to swallow, treatment. I have faith, “yes, yes, and yes.” My faith hangs out with little doses of reality (which we all have to deal with as well).
My big question is, “Can there just be an end to this saga so I can go on with the plans I have had for such a long time?” I’ve learned new things with the cancer journey as well. “I’ve learned there are different types of freedom. Not all freedom looks the same.” Sometimes freedom looks like the wind blowing through my hair, and sometimes it looks like my hair growing back from baldness. It’s all good. Whatever brings joy in the moment…
Peace and strength,
Dr. Rev. Jenine Marie Howry
Can I heal this? Will God heal it? Hmmm
Life Lessons by Jenine Marie 