Linda's Lessons Learned ... Kiss Your Loved Ones Every Day

Four years ago today I sat in my oncologist's office after five months of grueling chemotherapy treatments for a complicated form of Lymphoma. My regimen was over, or we hoped it was, and as my husband and I waited for the doctor to come in the room, I held my breath in anticipation. I'd been warned over and over that my Lymphoma was not curable. That folks very often relapsed quickly after treatment had completed. Ya da ya da....

So when Dr. K. came in the room, a smile on his face, I still held my breath. And when he said those words, "You're in complete remission," I finally exhaled. I don't know that I did anything else. There's a form of shock that overcomes us when we're placed in a life-altering, potentially life-threatening situation. I'm not sure I'd been aware all those five months before that I'd kept myself somewhat out-of-body. What I was going through was easier to deal with if I kept myself somehow separated from the base reality of the business at hand.

I had learned some crucial life lessons since I was diagnosed in 2010:

1. Don't ever, ever believe you're immune. Life can, and does, change in a flash. I won't say be prepared because you can't. Just hold on.

2. It's old advice but ... take one day at a time. No, wait, take one second at a time. It's possible the next second, and the next, might be a bit easier. Or it won't. But what choice do you have?

3. Never take anyone dear to you for granted. Anger over dishes in the sink means zip when it comes to having a hand to hold, and someone who loves you by your side no matter what.

4. Wake every morning--no matter how you feel or difficult life may seem--and say, "Thank you, Lord, for this new day." Appreciate every teensy detail. If you're having an IV put in, appreciate how good your nurse is with what she does. Tell her. Not only does it make her feel better which, in turn, makes you feel better, you take your mind off the less savory parts of the moment. Trust me. I know.

5. Kiss your loved ones every day. Self-explanatory and it is that simple.

6. Make peace with your Maker. Right here and and right now. If you need a reason, go back to Number One on this list.

I don't have a crystal ball. I don't believe in crystal balls. All I do know .. I've no clue what's down the pike for me. But then, you don't, either. None of us do. That's why faith is crucial. As of this moment in time, I'm still in remission and I thank God every day, many times a day. I wake with faith in the morning, and go to bed with faith at night. My constant companion. I actively tell myself, and God, every single day, many times a day, that I choose Joy. That reminds me how I DO have a choice in how I act in, and react to, life.

So please take a page from my Lessons Learned and live life joyously. Love a lot. Often. Smile. Look at a tree and examine the beauty of the leaves. Really see the life going on around you. None of us gets out of this game alive ... but we all can live with abandon while we're here.