Thank You!

"I want to tell you how much I appreciate all that you did to keep me going this last year and a half. That you did it while dealing with earth-shattering health challenges of your own broke my heart but only made me more grateful. You and a small group of people close to me made it possible for me to survive this and to help so many others. You are why I have gotten through this in one piece. Thank you.”

This was the letter I received from a friend. She was thanking me for supporting her. I felt like I had done very little, yet it meant so very much to her. What had I done? I’d had her kids over to play with mine. I’d had her family over for dinner on occasion. I’d called her to ask how her day was and to chat about mine.

It’s those small things that made all the difference to her days.

I was out for a walk with a friend. She apologized for not being there for me. She felt bad that she hadn’t brought my family a home-cooked meal. I explained to her that there was no need to apologize. She was doing more than enough by going for a walk with me. What she didn’t know is that my medical team didn’t want me walking outside on my own as I might experience low blood pressure and fall. Thus, I needed someone to walk with me to keep me safe. I didn’t need her to cook my family dinner, I needed her to walk with me.

This was not the first friend who had suggested she could be doing more. I’ve had friends regularly comment that they’d like to be more helpful or to ask what else they could do. What I let them know is that I have many people providing support. So, although their contribution may seem small, when combined with all the others, it’s not.

Over the past year, my family has had many people reach out to support us. I’ve had people cook my family meals. I’ve had people drive my kids to their sports activities. I’ve had people email and check in to see how I’m doing. I’ve had texts from people, including complete strangers, thanking me for sharing my story. I’ve had people send gifts to let me know they’re thinking of me and to brighten my day. I’ve had people empathize and be supportive when they heard my treatment had failed. I’ve had people listen as I complained about the side effects of chemotherapy. I’ve had people reply to my posts to cheer me on as I took the next step in this journey. I’ve had people read and share my story. I’ve had people visit and keep me company. I’ve had people pitch in to support us in many other ways. All of these things add up.

It’s each of these small things that have made all the difference to my days.

So, I want to tell you something.

I want to tell you how much I appreciate all that you’ve done to keep me going this last year and a bit. That you did it while dealing with your own life and issues has only made me more grateful. You’ve made it possible for me to survive this. You are why I have gotten through this in one piece. Thank you.