As I begin to think of a new year, I’ve decided instead of New Year’s resolutions, I will choose a word. My word for 2025 is resilience. When you have cancer, each new day is a gift. Some days are better than others. I choose to be resilient which for me means to embrace my inner strength to help me tackle any new challenges that come my way. It also means to adapt, endure and continue to move forward in the best way I can. I will focus on what I can control. I will trust God and the promises of His Word. I will lean on family and friends for love, support and prayers. I will celebrate small victories. I will find strength in the purpose of this journey by focusing on things that matter. I will practice emotional honesty and self compassion by facing each day with courage and hope. I won’t be perfect but I will be persistent. I am hopeful that 2025 will be a great year!

My cancer diagnosis has brought a heightened awareness of life’s fragility, making holidays with my family and friends especially meaningful. It reminds me to be in the present moment and celebrate the time I have with the people I love. Time together becomes more precious, filled with gratitude for each moment we share laughter, memories or just the simple things in life. The holidays are also an opportunity to create new memories, share love, and focus on what truly matters.

Also, my faith in God is a relationship that has sustained me and given me the strength to continue on in this journey which, at times, has been extremely hard physically and mentally. His love and grace are with me every step of the way. The support and love of my family, friends and my relationship with God is a gift I am eternally grateful for. Merry Christmas!

I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in September 2023. Cancer is not a gift but what I have learned from it is. One aspect of this is relationships; old and new, close friends and acquaintances and all the others that fall in between. Cancer has an uncanny way of reshaping the landscape of our relationships. In my own journey as a patient, I’ve found that cancer can make friends drift out of reach and unexpected allies emerge. Some people seem unsure of what to say or how to help, and their silent discomfort creates a distance I never thought would appear. Others, though, lean in – reaching out with compassionate words, prayers, shared laughter, and unyielding patience when I’m feeling overwhelmed or just when I need a kind word. I am blessed to have a very strong support system; but sometimes I find this journey can be a delicate, unpredictable balancing act: while I wish to maintain normalcy and talk about anything but my health, there’s no escaping that my cancer diagnosis has planted itself at the center of my life. What once flowed easily – light conversations, spontaneous get-togethers, plans made without a second thought now unfolds through the filter of my treatment schedule and energy levels.

My children recently went back to college for their senior and junior year. One is in Dallas and one is in Charlottesville. They were both home for the Summer. There is something about having your children under the same roof when you go to sleep at night; although there were nights they came in very late and I was already asleep. Every time they leave to go back to school I feel so sad and it’s particularly hard when they leave at the end of summer. There is no more “mom I need or mom can you or mom where is ….” No more buying extra groceries or doing extra laundry; things I really did not enjoy when they lived here full time. I miss the sound of their voices filling the house. I especially looked forward to the hugs I would get and I realized I might have held on a little too long. I found myself savoring every moment with them, making breakfast, buying extra things at the grocery store they loved as a child. I loved seeing their faces every morning when they left for their summer internships even when they were in a rush to get out the door. The sound of their voices and their friends’ voices permeating through the house made me feel so warm inside. The house was filled with love, laughter and connection. How I wish I could have the time back when we laid in bed and watched cartoons during summer vacation and I made chocolate chip pancakes or when we went on an adventure which was just a drive somewhere fun. So many little moments that gave me the gift of so many big and wonderful memories. Time has gone by like a blink of the an eye. So I will continue to try to fill the hole left in this house and in my heart by their departure. I treasure each moment I have with them even if it is a brief conversation on the phone or a text. They are precious gifts given to my by God and I will be eternally grateful. I hope one day they will truly understand how much I love them.

It’s been a long time since I said anything. My children are now 22 and 20. I’m going to give this a try again. I recently cleaned out my closet and realized I had way too many T-shirts. There were quite a few that have never been worn. I asked myself, “What in the world were you thinking?” Then I realized why I bought most of these T-shirts. I bought them because they expressed thoughts I felt inside, and the words on the T-shirts brought me comfort. “The mountains are calling and I must go” and mountain-related statements were printed on a lot of the T-shirts. Then there is “take me to the ocean.” There are T-shirts with quotes from my favorite movie, “Pride and Prejudice.” I have T-shirts with spiritual sayings like “Be still and know.” These T-shirts gave me hope and peace in a time when things in my life were chaotic. I also have a collection of crosses, and I find these bring me peace as well. Sometimes I think about faith and how we cannot actually see God in person, but the cross is a symbol, and when I hold it in my hand, I feel comfort. I will never let go of the crosses, but I have cleaned out the T-shirts and, in doing so, realized I don’t need a T-shirt for hope, peace, or comfort. All these things are found in each moment that God gives us on earth if we are aware enough to notice.

I’ve always wanted to start a blog.  So many times I thought “well, if I had a blog, I would say this …”.  Now I have a blog and I am not sure where to begin so I will just introduce myself.  My name is Sherron (pronounced like “Sharon”) and I am the mother of an 8th grade boy and a 7th grade girl.  I am married and am an “older” mom.  I had both my children in my early 40’s.  I am a Jesus follower and I love birds.  My first blog … “Wow!”.  I’m so excited!