{"id":2465,"date":"2019-10-12T00:30:01","date_gmt":"2019-10-11T21:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/?p=2465"},"modified":"2019-10-12T00:30:01","modified_gmt":"2019-10-11T21:30:01","slug":"chronic-hope-6-the-luxury-of-looking-forward","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/chronic-hope-6-the-luxury-of-looking-forward\/","title":{"rendered":"CHRONIC HOPE #6: The Luxury of Looking Forward"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cIf you can\u2019t fly then run, if you can\u2019t run then walk, if you can\u2019t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.\u201d<\/em><\/strong> Martin Luther King, Jr.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"When I was first diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) in my 20s I stopped looking too far forward. \u00a0Planning for the future felt presumptuous, so I learned to live more fully in the present.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

September 2019 marks 19 years since my cancer diagnosis<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had the privilege of reflecting back on 2 decades of living alongside a cancer diagnosis while continuously being treated for it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

4 different cancer treatments.<\/p>\n

12+ bone marrow biopsies.<\/p>\n

2 cutting edge miracle meds.<\/p>\n

3 miracle babies.<\/p>\n

3 times achieving medicated remissions.<\/p>\n

2 relapses.<\/p>\n

1 Master\u2019s Degree.<\/p>\n

Tens of thousands of dollars invested.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This journey is chronic. Chronic struggles.\u00a0 Chronic tears.\u00a0 Chronic persistence. Eventually forging a resilient chronic hope that anchors the soul.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I have learned invaluable life lessons of chronic hope:\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

We all have struggles. \u00a0We all need help. \u00a0We all seek a hope that is bigger than us.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

We don’t rise above our struggles alone.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I can dare to make long-term goals that are bigger than me, because others dared before me.<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In 1959 a researcher identified a very specific chromosomal abnormality present in CML patients.\u00a0 In the 1990s my first miracle medication was developed\u2014a targeted immunotherapy treatment\u2014that was revolutionary.\u00a0 The standard chemotherapy treatments did not discriminate between healthy cells and cancerous ones, thus, leaving the patient with a myriad of miserable toxicities and a bleak prognosis.\u00a0 But this miracle medication targeted and treated a very specific problem inside of me, on a genetic level.\u00a0 It was proven more effective, more efficient, and less toxic that standard chemo.\u00a0 It changed the world for people like me.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Reflecting back is essential for moving forward.<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now, with 3 growing kids, a specialized degree as a language and culture learning coach, and a healthy body in medicated remission, I dare to look forward.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There are so many people along the way who have given of themselves for me to be in this privileged place.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Like the doctor who created my miracle med after building on a researcher\u2019s breakthrough 30 years earlier, what offerings can I bring that just might change the quality of life for a single soul?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

These words of Martin Luther King, Jr. both scare and inspire me:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cAn individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.\u201d <\/em><\/strong>\u00a0MLK, Jr.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As a language learning coach, I love to champion individuals towards greater possibilities in their lives.\u00a0 But MLK Jr.\u2019s words challenge me further forward.\u00a0 How can I rise above my personal cancer and be a part of treating malignancies that face all humanity?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cIf I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.\u201d <\/em><\/strong>MLK, Jr.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

While Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.\u2019s impact on society was profound, maybe he started with small offerings and a few champions in his life.\u00a0 I can do that!\u00a0 I can spend precious life energy trying to figure out my present and future impact, courageously taking small steps forward.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THANK YOU<\/strong>, dear people in my life, who have championed me along the way to fight my battles with cancer\u2014my devoted Greek-immigrant family, my loving husband in sickness and in health, my life-giving friends, my empathetic professors and generous neighbors.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THANK YOU<\/strong>, doctors and researchers, for devoting your lives and your minds to profoundly changing my prognosis and my quality of life.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Thank you<\/strong>, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., for your wisdom and impact on the world, and for encouraging me to bravely take baby steps far beyond my personal cancer.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

THANK YOU<\/strong>, readers, for allowing me to reflect back, and dare into the future, on this journey of chronic hope.<\/p>\n

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