An aching left wrist. I am sitting here holding my left wrist, cradling it in my right arm. The wrist is speaking to me after two days of back-to-back kayaking and cycling training sessions. And then the enemy of my soul and biggest liar attacks my thought life. He tells me that I am not ready for the triathlon I have been training for. He tells me that I might get more injuries. He tells me that I am not strong enough. He tells me that even though I've trained as much as I h

PLEASE NOTE!! This may be too much to know or to read for many of you, but I feel I need to speak up. My voice and my writing may make a difference to someone reading this! It was a Tuesday morning in early spring of 2024. April 9th, 2024 to be exact was the day I lost both my breasts. The word "Mastectomy" still sounds too mild, too toned down, too gentle for the reality of an amputation, even now. Why is it that only breast amputations have a special name in the medical co

It had been already been a very distressing year to our family, then some unfortunate events slid into place, that made it a year to remember (even though all we wanted to do was to forget it). The year was 2013. The year started out like any usual year. We had planned a trip to visit my mom in South Africa during our summer. The stress of having to find economically priced flights and having to endure the 8 hours to London and then another 11 hour flight from London to Johan

Two months ago, I was working through questions in my "Fully Alive" Bible study and a question came up that took me my surprise. The question read "Think about yourself a year from now: what would a more courageous, audacious you look like?" The same day that question came up, another prompt from the Year in Review journaling came up that made me really take notice! "Things you're still eager to explore next year" was the prompt. Interesting how those two very similar quest

I started noticing small changes at first. My bouts of exercise became longer without having to take a nap, I was able to do a few more activities throughout the day, I could remember small things, and the brain fog was getting less. The anxiety I had previously experienced when I was around people started lessening, I was able to independently drive to appointments, I started to experience laughter without holding back. But these changes happened in such minute steps, that i

Looking back at last year seems like a blur. I sometimes wake up wondering if 2024 even existed. The brain-body connection wasn't there,...

Sunset This past weekend, Kevin and I were treated to the ultimate retreat offered by Bluebird Cancer Retreat at Camp Geneva on Lake...

We planted new seeds for our veggie garden indoors yesterday. This has been quite a process, as it is a new way of doing things. We have...

Just over a week ago, including the last day of last year, I sat down to reflect on the year 2024. As you may already know, I have made...

Suffering is not easy to write about. It is a tough subject because it is very personal and subjective. But we all suffer at some point...

You must be thinking that I am going to criticize putting up a Christmas tree or call it a heathen tradition we should abandon. Well no,...

I was sitting on my recumbent bike this afternoon worshiping God as I was pedaling along. As I racked up the miles, I started thinking...

The big hoopla of the Paris 2024 Olympics seems long gone. I have always watched the Olympics religiously in the past. This year the...

Just reading the title, must have you either humming or singing the beloved song from "The Sound of Music"! I know it had me looking up...

This week I had the wonderful opportunity to meet a physical therapist who specializes in breast cancer rehab. I was reluctant to spend...

This journey I am on, this wilderness I am traveling in, is so unpredictable and so exhausting. Just when I think I've got a handle on...

I cannot believe that it is April! It feels like I have missed the past few months in the flurry of appointments, procedures and tests....

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve ©Wiebke Papenfus 2019 Have you ever gone on an impromptu trip? Maybe someone invited...

During the past few months, I have been pondering friendships a lot. It has been a very dark time in my life with my husband being in...

In the night before New Year’s Eve I was dreaming. I was traveling and had to get all my luggage from the hotel room, to the elevator,...