Maybe I am crazy, but 2014 was a great year!

It is New Year’s Eve day 2014. This year has been amazing. People probably think I am crazy when they hear me say I had a great year. I am serious, though. Yes, I had Cancer. Yes, I went through chemotherapy. Yes, it was a really hard year. But out of the hardest times often come the greatest gifts.I am fortunate that even though I have not forgotten the hard times, I am able to focus on the good times we had in 2014. Thankfully, there were lots of good times. When I think about the medical challenges and the stress it placed on everyone in my family, I know it was really difficult. But then I think about the ways in which those challenges made us all better people.

I remember when I first got diagnosed with cancer, how I would tell people, “I know I should feel “lucky” because I was diagnosed early enough for surgery, but I don’t feel “lucky” yet. Does anyone with cancer feel “lucky”? Maybe in a year or two, I will feel lucky.” Now that a little time has passed, I do feel incredibly lucky.

I feel lucky because I continue to show no evidence of disease. I feel lucky because this year has brought me the gift of seeing life in a different, more meaningful way. I feel fortunate that my family made it through this journey. We are all stronger and closer than ever before. I feel so blessed to have been surrounded by old friends and new ones this year. I know I have said it before, but my experience has brought an extraordinary group of new people into my life.

Going through something like this strips you down to the bare essence of who you really are as a human being. I am glad that people have been so loving and accepting of me during a time when I have gone through my greatest challenge to date. What matters most to me in my life is the relationships I have had. I am thankful for all of the people who have been a part of my life this year. Thank you to my family, friends and readers who have made 2014 a year that I will remember mostly for the good that came out of the challenge. I am looking forward to sharing 2015 with all of the wonderful people in my life!