Excellent write up and share of your story. Thank you.
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."
My son sent the link to me and it was so beautifully and well written. My husband passed away (stage IV lung cancer) less than five months ago , he never smoke. The most difficult part for me is that he didn’t want anybody to know except my children and their in-laws. Not even our best friends and my own siblings, until the last month before he died. I know how hard it was for me to get through. Empathy is very important. Now I am keeping company for a new friend whose husband has just found out he is with stage IV lung cancer. This articulate helps me to do even more to her, as much as can be. It would also help and remind myself to connect with other people around me too. Thank you again for this wonderfully written article, every word goes to my vein.
All the best to your friend and her husband. They are on the start of a long road fighting this cancer, and they will need every bit of support and love from you and their larger community.
Beautiful! That human inclination to want to assign blame can be as soul-crushing as cancer. My mom was a smoker, so when lung cancer took her too soon, I was furious with tobacco companies. Channeling the grief toward a better world takes inner work -thanks for sharing yours.
I am so sorry for your loss. Lung cancer is often overlooked because it seems to people it is "deserved" somehow. I was so angry for so long, and it took a lot of prayer to understand that the human desire to blame and find an explanation is why people feel the way they do.
I lost my father to a hear attack almost 14 years ago, and I had ppl at the service asking about his weight or pre-existing conditions, I remember being so mad, as if having high blood pressure (which he didn't have) would help me deal with the loss. If there's one thing that losing him at 23 taught me is to be there for people who face loss, it's uncomfortable but it can go such a long way. Loved this post, I am sure you and your family have wonderful memories about your Dad!
Thank you for sharing such a vulnerable part of your life. I am sorry for your loss. The only news that is worse than Cancer is hearing about your loved ones having cancer. As a cancer survivor myself, I can relate to everything you share and maybe some day I will have the courage to share my story too
Deb - this was incredibly helpful to read. My mother is going through Stage 4 cancer and I feel exactly the same way about sharing (particularly the "once I start crying I won't be able to stop" sentiment). It was helpful to see this framing -- particularly because "connecting with others" is so integral to how I operate in life and in my work. Thank you so much for sharing this!
Excellent write up and share of your story. Thank you.
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
COVID and avoiding vaccinations are the new lung cancer and smoking. Regardless of the statistics, we could all use more empathy.
My son sent the link to me and it was so beautifully and well written. My husband passed away (stage IV lung cancer) less than five months ago , he never smoke. The most difficult part for me is that he didn’t want anybody to know except my children and their in-laws. Not even our best friends and my own siblings, until the last month before he died. I know how hard it was for me to get through. Empathy is very important. Now I am keeping company for a new friend whose husband has just found out he is with stage IV lung cancer. This articulate helps me to do even more to her, as much as can be. It would also help and remind myself to connect with other people around me too. Thank you again for this wonderfully written article, every word goes to my vein.
I am so sorry for your loss.
All the best to your friend and her husband. They are on the start of a long road fighting this cancer, and they will need every bit of support and love from you and their larger community.
Beautifully written post about being human. Opening up takes courage, but the reward is helping yourself and helping others.❤️
Having lost a non-smoking friend to lung cancer, this really hit home. Thank you for sharing this and I am teary eyed reading every word you wrote.
Beautiful! That human inclination to want to assign blame can be as soul-crushing as cancer. My mom was a smoker, so when lung cancer took her too soon, I was furious with tobacco companies. Channeling the grief toward a better world takes inner work -thanks for sharing yours.
I am so sorry for your loss. Lung cancer is often overlooked because it seems to people it is "deserved" somehow. I was so angry for so long, and it took a lot of prayer to understand that the human desire to blame and find an explanation is why people feel the way they do.
I lost my father to a hear attack almost 14 years ago, and I had ppl at the service asking about his weight or pre-existing conditions, I remember being so mad, as if having high blood pressure (which he didn't have) would help me deal with the loss. If there's one thing that losing him at 23 taught me is to be there for people who face loss, it's uncomfortable but it can go such a long way. Loved this post, I am sure you and your family have wonderful memories about your Dad!
Thank you for sharing such a vulnerable part of your life. I am sorry for your loss. The only news that is worse than Cancer is hearing about your loved ones having cancer. As a cancer survivor myself, I can relate to everything you share and maybe some day I will have the courage to share my story too
Deb - this was incredibly helpful to read. My mother is going through Stage 4 cancer and I feel exactly the same way about sharing (particularly the "once I start crying I won't be able to stop" sentiment). It was helpful to see this framing -- particularly because "connecting with others" is so integral to how I operate in life and in my work. Thank you so much for sharing this!