A story was done on Lori and I in our hometown paper yesterday, it ‘s about some of our accomplishments and hurdles we faced. I say we because even though the article states I went through a hard time it’s easy to forget it’s even harder for the one by your side while you’re going through it. My wife is my biggest supporter, she’s the first to tell people about my work, the first to hit “like” on my Facebook page and the first to talk to the Newspapers about me saying “I have a good story for your paper.” I don’t care that I made the paper, I care about how wonderful my wife is and how supportive she is. I don’t care who you are, if you don’t have a solid support system then you’re on borrowed time before you fall. Appreciate the ones who appreciate you, honor them as they do you.
As the write up says I had to undergo Chemotherapy and surgeries for over a year, it was so taxing on me I could not work or even paint. My brain was so taxed it was next to impossible to mix colors, it was the strangest thing! What would normally take me a few days to complete would take me 3 weeks to get half way through it while on Chemo, it was so bad I had to completely walk away from it. What the paper doesn’t say is during this entire time my wife took on the responsibilities of well….EVERYTHING. Our income got cut in half and she worked Mon-Saturday to cover our bills, every Saturday she worked for free so she could take off and go with me for every visit, every Chemo session and surgery. There were times when we only had 20 dollars in our account to last the week, try that sometime when that doesn’t even cover half your gas tank.
During Chemo I got phlebitis in my right arm and let me tell you, there isn’t such a thing as relief when you have that because it’s in your veins. Lori would wake up every time I was in pain to try and make me comfortable, sometimes this would be 3 AM and she’d have to turn around get up in a few hours to head to work. Towards the end of chemo and the main surgery I could not walk or get out of bed, Lori had to do everything for me. It was a very humiliating experience at times and yet Lori wouldn’t blink an eye, she would just help. When I could get around she had to help me from room to room, try doing that with someone over twice your body weight. She’s my hero.
This post isn’t to say oh poor me, look what I went through it’s to honor my wife in the amazing love and support she’s given me. I am the man that I am today because of her, she deserves more than I can give her.
I’ll close with this, you’re never alone in this world. If you stop and actually listen to the ones who support and believe in you, it might surprise you on what you can accomplish. It doesn’t matter what comes at you or what you have to go through, keep pushing forward and keep your thoughts on the ones cheering you on, not the ones trying to trip you.
