One Year

All week I've been wondering what I would say today, er yesterday... the 31st. I was trying to put together an epic blog post that could double as a mass email to my many cancer-followers. You see, January 31st is my one year anniversary of diagnosis.

I saw Dr. K on Friday and we had a lovely chat, some high fives, and hug. Every time I tell him I'm gaining weight at an alarming rate he tells me I look lovelier than the last time I came in. Friday he even went as far as to say "svelte." This man makes his living charming middle aged breast cancer patients. Thank you God, I'm not on hormone therapy and 30 lbs heavier after a year of treatment. Not that something as trivial as extra weight is my main fascination.

So anyway, I keep trying to think of significant things to say about today/yesterday and... what keeps coming to mind is that I was taking a shower on Friday and it occurred to me that my bottle of shampoo has been sitting on my shower shelf for the last year. For some reason, I pulled my conditioner out of the shower, packed away all my hair supplies, and hid everything that reminded me of my hair. And yet I left the shampoo bottle. From March-November, I would look at that shampoo every time I took a shower and remember that I was going to need it again some day. Victory. I have enough hair to necessitate shampoo...

When treatment started (Feb 13, 2008) I couldn't get over how long the protocol was. Eight months! I tried to tell myself over and over again, that in one year everything would be fine. I would feel ok, I would have hair, the cancer would be gone.

Today I got up and did an hour and a half of sweaty power yoga. Then I came home and attempted to style my unruly new hair. There is no traceable amount of cancer in my body.

I am so entirely, eternally grateful. Thank you, body. Thank you, family. Thank you, friends.