Reader Reaction to “Seeking Normal”

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I wanted to highlight a few of the comments that were posted in response to “Seeking Normal,” a post that I shared earlier this week which explored how much our lives have changed since Josh’s cancer diagnosis in March.

From Facebook:

• Amy Steffke praying for your normal
• Jean Thrush Praying for strength for all of you. God bless and heal You all
• Mary Jo Roth Cox Yes, Yes, Yes to all of this. There will be a time when you are on the other side. It will not erase what has happened, but you may find that you are stronger because of it. And in fact, you are already strong. I know that about all of you. So lean on each other, and know that there is an enormous community of support here when you need it.
• Nancy Boyne You said this so true Jon and so well. Love you all . Mom
• Kathy Edwards I understand more then you know!! Thinking of you all!!
• Lori Rae Draper Prayers hugs and love sis. I am always here for you if you need to talk. I love you!!
• Diane Courter Life throws a curve ball at us at different times in our lives. Catch them and throw them back. Stay strong and know that you have a number of people that care and are saying prayers for everything tho be back the way it was.
• Darth Lou Holliday Normal is how you are doing what you do as you do it. You are doing it well.
• Kathy Hawkins Thanks for sharing your insights; sometimes we need a reminder of how precious “normal” is, and you certainly gave us something to think about. I hope your new normal – a happy , healthy family at home, comes soon. Keep the faith, hope and love!
• Jan Mason May our God continue to strengthen you and give you courage as you continue in the new normal.

From the website:

• Carol McCaul Stay strong Warriors! From your post I can tell this has aged you beyond your years. Many of us have these conversations with ourselves as we turn 60 or 65. Now that you can talk the talk, walk the walk! Live like it really means something. Prayers to you and yours everyday.

I wanted to thank everybody for your response, prayers, and words of encouragement. I’ve been reading “The Handmaid’s Tale,” and came across a quote recently which also struck me as relevant to my post and our situation:

“Ordinary is what you are used to. This may not seem ordinary to you now, but after a time it will. It will become ordinary”

I think that with so many things changing so quickly, it is sometimes difficult to remember the really big change that triggered everything else: Josh has cancer. And, while it has been disruptive to our lives, the fact that he is at Mary Free Bed, getting the radiation treatments, and taking the chemotherapy, all indicate that he has an opportunity to beat it. So, while our day-to-day lives do not feel “ordinary,” this is all transitory right now until he is at least farther along with his physical therapy and living back at home.

I was thinking this morning about Josh walking for graduation. Right now, there is a lot of weight associated with the idea of him finishing high school, let alone literally walking up onto the stage to accept his diploma. I can still see him do it. I do not know yet what challenges he will encounter while completing his classes, but I believe he will be able to over come those as well.

I have thought a little bit about what could be accomplished through time travel, if such a thing was possible.  Could I have changed anything if I were able to travel back to January or February with worries about what was to come? I think that the answer is that there wasn’t much more that could have been done, except getting Josh’s diagnosis a little sooner, which would have lead to the same results, but maybe sooner. Even his doctor at home, who had her suspicions of what was causing his issue with his leg, chose to give him one more full day of normalcy before he was taken to the ER for a CT scan.

What I would have done is enjoyed my moments with Josh as much as possible before things really got crazy. This is something I’ve always felt was important, but there is always more that can be done. And, I try to do that now during the days that I’ve been with him at Mary Free Bed. If there is any lesson to be learned from this, it is that is super important to enjoy every moment you have with someone, because you don’t know how much time you have before either life gets turned upside down, or worse. And, this could mean looking past someone’s flaws and appreciating the 1,000 other things that they do get right. Because it takes only a moment for someone to change unexpectedly.