New life, new chapter

 I totally forgot about this blog started back in 2010.  These previous posts were right before I found out I had synovial sarcoma stage 3 tumor, one on my left foot on the outer side, and another wrapped around my ankle like an octopus with tentacles going in all directions. There was no saving the foot.  I became an amputee and have lived with the cancer reccuring four more times in the first 7 years of my journey with cancer. 

Now, 12 years later my Facebook memories remind me of everything leading up to the diagnosis.  My life completely changed overnight but also there's a before amputation and after amputation change in me as a person.

I lost everything I had worked extremely hard for when it happened. Over the years, I have grown mentally, spiritually and physically in ways I would never have fathomed.

I love who I am now. I love me. The little girl in me has someone fighting for her now. She no longer needs approval nor love from anyone else. Especially those who manipulated, lied, both to her and about her. No one else gets to make decisions for her nor tell her she's not smart enough nor criticize her and beat her down.

Instead, I rise and fly and am being myself. Intelligent, beautiful, loved by God, and creative. My journey looks more like a glittery mosaic of billions of pieces of glass brought together to show how beauty trumps pain no matter what the enemies try to convince me.

Love, compassion and passion have made me the resilient person I am today. I'm not crazy, lazy, stupid, nor gullible as some may have twisted my life story to be. I slayed the dragons of hate, greed and negativity.

Healthy life, healthy relationships. Boundaries and necessary walls where needed. Breathe in, breathe out. Always guarded with the armor against the evil disguised as charming snakes. I don't play the martyr. I am victorious and choose every day how I live and what I put my energies into.

I'm a writer, storyteller, gifted artist. I pray daily for my sweet granddaughters and their parents. May they be surrounded by love, kept safe, and blessed beyond measure.

Life is truly what you make it. Where there is real love, hate cannot penetrate and destroy.

Peace be with you and may you feel the love God has for you today in your heart. Amen.