glimpsesbymelanie

My gosh!  It has been nearly two years since I had an entry.  I have had quite a journey in that time.  I faced two horrific battles during this time and with the help of God and some excellent care I have lived to fight another day.

First I had a toxic reaction to some chemicals in a white board.  I had worked with it for years, cutting and framing it to use with my students.  This time I was in a hot car with the board in a bent position and it gave off fumes that landed me in the hospital for a week.  My electrolytes were all out of balance and I had some nerve damage.  After about six months and I thought I was almost back to normal (not that I have ever been normal) I had a large swelling to come under my right jaw bone.  After some testing I was diagnosed with stage 4 aggressive  Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.  WOW!  Jump back!  After much intensive chemo, drug treatments, blood transfusions, vomiting and just feeling like CRAP I am doing better.

It has been a year since my last chemo treatment and I am back in my workshop making my pens, pencils, letter openers and seam rippers.  I have added coffee scoops, ice cream scoops and pizza cutters to my list.  I am working at the library again.  We are still doing fund raisers to make money, since we are independent and get monies from no one.  I didn’t wear wigs or turbans when I lost my hair.  I had a friend that put henna paintings on my head.  We used four different designs, three were trees of life and the last one was a huge lotus flower and butterflies.  I have my hair now but, I don’t have a photo.

Enough of this.  I will be back online now and sharing with you some of my thoughts.  Did you miss me?  I will leave you with this:  One of the greatest gifts is time.