“Can you talk.” The text read across my phone.
I stepped out of the conference room to call my sister. I knew this meant it wasn’t good news from the MRI results. I supported her best I could as she cried on the phone. The tumor was growing, the cyst was growing and yet another tumor had grown on the other side of his optic nerve. I supported her the best I could states apart and no answers to give and then I wiped away my tears, put my game face on and went back to work.
As the day came to an end and the last participant left the conference room, my walls cracked. As I broke down and cried, my colleagues, who have truly become my brothers and sisters were there for me. I knew each of them had their own heart breaks and burdens yet, at this very moment they were there helping me shoulder my burden.
As we rode the glass elevators to the lobby I found myself looking across the atrium at all the people seemingly going on with life. I began to wonder, did the man on the couch, reading the newspaper have a teenager going through rehab. What about the woman in her black dress pants and high heels, did she give birth to a still born baby and now face the question of whether or not she will ever be a mom. And the woman at the table perusing what looked like written notes of some sort. Did she have a mom, who had been her best friend, and was now battling Alzheimer’s. Who in the room had lost a loved one, perhaps even a child. Who had lost someone in a fatal tragic accident, not prepared one bit. Who watched someone suffer from cancer for years and then finally take their last breath. Who had faced a battle just like mine, yet from a glance you would never know. It is easy to look around and feel like you are the only one facing such tragedy and trials.
My tears I shed just moments ago were now dried to my cheeks. I looked around and knew we all fight a battle no one knows anything about. And as I felt the shoulders of my teammates I was grateful for these who love me through the trials I face. And that is what we need to hang on to. We can’t predict life, we can’t prepare for the trials we are meant to bare, but we can support each other through it. So today I send love to all those feeling the same way I do right now….and I thank all of you who have been so amazingly supportive to me on this journey.