I've always heard there are angels who walk among us, and today I think I met one of them. She was shorter and older than I pictured an angel being, but there were other characteristics that gave her away. This angel carried a 25-lb. frozen turkey, and it was almost as big as she was.
I had gone to Big Star (a grocery store in West Memphis) for a package of Duncan Hines Brownie mix so I could make a batch to take to my chemo nurses. The angel got in line behind me, and I felt a bit guilty when I saw her struggling with the giant turkey and I had such few items on the check-out counter. As the cashier finished with the folks in front of me, I suggested to the angel that she rest the edge of the turkey on the little ledge near the register to give her some relief. When I spoke to her, she looked up at me and gave me one of those longer looks (Of course, I figured she was staring at my hair).
Then she surprised me. She said, "Who does your hair sweetie? It is so cute!" I couldn't believe these words had come out of her mouth, but they did, and I thanked her for her kindness. Then I leaned over and whispered in the angel's ear that I was a chemo patient and that my hair was actually a wig. She exclaimed that she would have never known it, and she went on about how attractive it was. God sent this tiny angel to have an encounter with me today. And it was reassuring and just what I needed.
Today was my fifth day of wearing my wig, and I truly am getting more and more used to it. It's still a big shift for me, and I have to remember to take it off when I come home and before I start cooking. My wig consultant said heat from the oven or the grill will singe it, and I don't want that to happen!
My second chemo treatment is tomorrow, and I am so hoping my results will be similar to my first treatment. I've had three very good weeks without significant side effects, and I feel extremely fortunate. I have enjoyed good weather, good food and I've felt pretty decent. After the first week of some minor issues, I have felt almost normal other than becoming more easily fatigued, and I've been keeping a journal of each day since the original treatment just so I'll maybe have an idea of what to expect this time.
I know it sounds silly, but I'm wondering if my port will still work right for my treatment. I still don't like it, and I'm aware of it way more often than people said I'd be. I actually despise it, and I can't wait for the day that it will come out. I can feel "itchy" places around it where I think the tubes going into my arteries are scratching me. I know, crazy, but that's what it feels like. It's been just over a month since the port was installed, and I can't say that it hurts me, but it is in my way a lot. I actually put my seatbelt shoulder strap under my arm so it won't rub on my port. As it the area has healed, the port has become more visible to me, and the skin covering it seems so thin. I think I may need an angel to visit me and counsel me about my port. Just sayin.
So I am hoping tomorrow will be an uneventful day chemo-wise, and that we will be home by early afternoon. I'm also hoping to run into my friend, Greta, who I met during my last treatment. Maybe we can swap stories about chemo and what all has been happening to us for the past few weeks. God knows we need other people, even if they aren't small in stature and toting a big turkey.
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