09.27.07
Life truly is …. BEAUTIFUL!
They say (ok, there are those “they” people again… Someday I want to meet them, anyway…) that “life is what you make of it.” This is so true and lately, it seems as though life truly could not get more beautiful. I have friends that surround me with friendship and love and of course a family that has never stopped loving me or more importantly, supporting me. And now life has handed me another bonus – my CEA levels are DOWN!!
For those who know – I have been dealing with “C” for sometime now. It went from bad to worse several months ago. Chemo has been, shall we say, “fun.” I must admit, I do tarot readings for nurses and PA’s (I think that is the right abbreviation) when I am having my treatments and it is always fun. One my my nurses once said to me that she had been talking to a friend about me and said this, “We have this crazy woman who does not understand she is supposed to be wiped out after her treatments. She waits a while after we are done, and the heads off to some photography event or gala or who knows what – she simply doesn’t know when to quit!” Of course when she told me this, I could not stop smiling. Regardless of all this has done to me I was NOT going to let it get to me.
Recently however – a few weeks ago, another friend, well she tore into me. She told me how I was not doing what I needed to do, I had missed a couple of chemo sessions and I seemed to have already given up. In a way, perhaps in that brief moment – a 2-3 week period – I had. She woke me up to reality. In the past 3 weeks I have stuck to all my meds, treatments and positive attitude even more. I’ve changed my diet a bit and my friends see me out shooting events or even playing the drums or percussion at Uncommon Ground (every Monday – remember!?) Oh and my ex – the one I moved here with two years ago – is finally no longer a part of my life. (we had bought a condo, and well it was messy, but that is over with as well) . As all these things go on around me, a call from my doctor a few days ago simply said, “CEA is below 400!” And if you know cancer, well, I was at 1300 when this all started and after 2 surgeries, and all the treatments, it is below 400 and dropping!
WOO HOO!!!
They say, (yes, them again) that when life hands you lemons you make lemonade – well I have and I will continue to do so. I will stick to all I am doing and more importantly, the positive attitude that I have will see me through all of this.
Last night I shot another event – for CNOW (Chicago Chapter of NOW) and the women and men at this wonderful event continued to inspire and push me to be even better. I love you all – those that I see daily and those I only run into from time to time.
Chicago is an incredible city which has given me even more incredible opportunities. I know this blog entry sounds a little sappy, but I guess it is something I want to share, so I hope you will indulge me just a little more.
When I first moved here – I was in a bad place with a job I did not like and a relationship that was toxic. I fell into a pit that I never thought I would come out of. And then, the Gay Games appeared on the horizon and a new job offer popped up. I changed jobs – the relationship ended and she moved away – AND the Gay Games gave me an opportunity to be a part of something I could only have dreamed of. To all the organizers of the games and all the volunteers, photographers and more – THANK YOU for welcoming me into the fold of this great organization. And after all of this, a beautiful book has just been published of the incredible images of the games – but I will write about that more in another entry.
Fast forward to today – I host the Open Mic at Uncommon Ground every Monday now – surrounded by incredible musicians and talent – stop by sometime. I am surrounded by more friends than I have ever had , and even my music is filling my life in ways I did not imagine before. I was a part of two HRC galas, LCCP, Howard Brown Center, The Center on Halsted and more. I continue to shoot for Windy City Times and my photography is actually known around town. I have wonderful opportunities to meet celebrities from all walks of life as well as THE movers and shakers in the LGBT community. And now, on top of it all – the cancer is retreating!!!
Now, as I look back on the past 2 years – a difficult journey to say the least, but one that taught me much. I will continue to look forward – at all the beauty that life has to offer and be happier than I have ever been!
Life truly is Beautiful!
Peace, love and light,
Kat