Happy Fourth of July
Hello all. I’m sorry for not writing yesterday (GADS! Good thing it’s a new month or people would start yelling at me for not writing enough!) 
Last night I drove up to the mountains of North Georgia to be with my sons during the last part of their boy scout camp. The weather here is fabulous — a little warm during the day, but it was nice and chilly this morning (the kind of chilly that makes you want to snuggle down in your sleeping bags and enjoy its warmth — unfortunately, the cot I’m “sleeping” on is not particularly comfortable, so I opted for getting up around 6a this morning).
Yesterday and again today, I was thinking about how nice it is NOT to be connected to a chemo pump during these little bouts of freedom I’ve been having over the last couple of weeks. It seems appropriate that one of my times of freedom coincides with the Fourth of July. The old saying is true: “You do not appreciate something until you no longer have it.” Having spent 24 hours a day, 4 days a week (for the last 5 weeks) connected to a chemo pump, I very quickly came to appreciate the simple joy of NOT having to tote around the pump, of carrying my fanny pack where ever I went (and I mean — WHERE EVER)! Sure I could take it off, but then I still had to stay within 3 feet of the pack (as that is as far as the tubing would reach).
At the end of next week, I will be done with this phase of my treatment. I will still have weekly onocological visits, but until July 24, my time will be relatively free. I hope that moving forward I continue to remember what it was like to be connected to my pump, so I do not begin to take for granted the freedom of not having it. Similarly, I hope that we all take a moment to appreciate whatever freedoms we enjoy. (Some day I’ll post about the number of visitors I have had from a variety of different countries. How they all get here, I’m not sure, but I continue to be humbled that so many people are interested enough to click through to my site.)
Be safe this holiday weekend and have a grand ole time.
Merle