Goals and Milestones

First I will say my scans again show stable disease. Hurrah! I am feeling grateful and blessed. In another post I will speak to this further and describe the roller coaster known as side effects. But today is a day to celebrate yet another goal met, milestone reached.

In August of 2017 I was just a few weeks into my relationship with Lady Lorlatinib. In May it was confirmed that yes the cancer had managed to sneak past Queen Crizotinib while she was sleeping and it had reached my brain meninges. I began the Lorlatinib clinical trial in early July and we were traveling to Boston every three weeks. The early side effects were horrendous, but the drug immediately began working.

During this time we continued our modified version of Camp Gramma. I remember the excitement leading up to the total eclipse that month (Aug. 2017). We bought our glasses, nearly wore them out, and hoped for sun on THE day. I cannot describe how very thrilling it was for me to watch the four campers and their cousin Jake on that beautiful summer day as they turned their faces to the sky in awe of the magnitude of the moment. I was grateful then and still today that we experienced that and so much more in our Camp Gramma days.

Shortly after that day I saw a Facebook event post about the April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse. Laughingly I hit “going”, knowing the odds and statistics were against me, but also feeling that I really had so many things to live for that I didn’t see how I could take time to die. And then I began setting more and more goals, reaching milestones, and making it a daily practice to be grateful and to find joy in the everyday every day. Every once in a while that event would pop up, reminding me of the importance of staying filled with hope.

Today is THE day! While the rest of the path of the eclipse may be shrouded in clouds, the skies in Maine (after some very gloomy weather) are clear. I am not going to that event in Millinocket, preferring a quieter viewing. This afternoon Dan, one of the campers, and our daughter will be watching the eclipse in our blueberry field on our side of the mountain. How very wonderful is that!

Thank you for all your positive thoughts and energy, your prayers, your support in so many ways. Each day my appreciation for the gift of time and life deepens. Finding joy in the everyday every day with Dan, our dachshunds, and our goats on the side of the mountain.