Fish and chips by the sea anyone? Though a woolly tool,
surviving five years after a cancer diagnosis is a bit of a milestone… not as
much of one as five years into remission (i.e. ‘cured’) but you have to pass
the first to get to the second and today, despite my detour into terminal, I
do!
I’d been trying to think of a suitable way to mark the
occasion, something not dependent on access to a car or lots of dosh, something
that celebrated my continuing life without highlighting how my health and
heartiness has diminished in the meantime. It had to
be something I didn’t have to wear fancy clothes for, and that wearing unfancy
clothes for didn’t mean an unrealistic level of physical activity. It had to be
something I could happily do without chosen companions so that there’d be no
difficulty accepting with equanimity invitations declined and, if the experience included interaction with strangers, that any sense of physical, financial or social
inadequacy I suffered from would be insignificant in the sharing of the moment. Oh
and also, if away from home overnight, there had to be neither sharing of
bathroom facilities nor getting up at crack of dawn to eat dead pig!
So I’d been researching into possible options for a few
weeks to no avail, and then lying on the treatment table discussing ideas with
Rachel (who’s at the meditation centre this week) something I’d heard of a few
years ago came into my head and I went home after to investigate and discover exactly
what was required just here!
My thanks today are for all the many boxes ticked including the
departure date and almost obligatory untidy hair! It doesn’t matter if I see
any cetaceans this time or not - I’ve been lucky to do so in the Bay of Biscay
before for which I am extremely grateful, and anyone who’s ever been on a boat
with me before knows I’m happy just to gaze at the sea (and maybe marvel at a passing
ship or two, possibly eating some cake)! This is a fitting rite of passage, a little adventure I would have
happily wandered off on when I was well and strong and my gratitude at being able to so now is probably more than most of you can imagine.
I wanted to post this early before I left, but had no pictures to include just yet. Then I saw this card on my mantelpiece and thought it would do...and then remembered it is from the town with the same name as the ship I'm due to sail on! In theory there is wifi access on board and I hope to be able to keep up with my blog, but if I don’t post for a couple of days don't assume I've fallen overboard...maybe I’ll be having a whale of a time, eh?
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