MONDAY MEMOIRS - Putting Away the Clutter...

I've been without internet for a few days, so I've taken the time away from my computer to clean up all of my Christmas "mess". As I was putting things away, and dusting/vacuuming/etc., I realized how much I love this time of the new year - when all of the clutter is put away, and I breath a sigh of relief because my house looks clean. I love it when I get to bring out my everyday decorations - my beautiful Japanese doll, my favorite red vase, my family picture above the fireplace, my grandmother's clock. Away go the Santa things, and out come my favorite photos - those of my grandparents' weddings, my children when they were young, a picture of Christ. I feel like I'm finally getting back to normal after the whirl of holidays in the last few months.

As I boxed things up today, I started thinking about the phrase "getting back to normal". I remember how different everything was after I was diagnosed with cancer. Instead of helping my kids with homework, or enjoying my job, my days were filled with doctor visits, and treatments. Everything familiar was set aside. It seemed to go on and on - I thought I would never feel and do familiar things again. But then, after (quite) awhile, I started feeling better, my hair grew back, my surgeries were over, and I slowly started to put away the unfamiliar things that cluttered my days, and pull out those wonderful things I love so much - spending time with my children, cooking a good dinner, a clean house, sitting and reading a favorite novel.

Take a few minutes in your cancer journal and talk about "getting back to normal". And if you are still in the middle of your journey, think about what you want to do to get back to your familiar life. What will that entail?

I realized something as I was writing this post - I'm grateful for the unfamiliar - those things that "clutter" my life at times. Because when those things cease, and I am again surrounded by the familiar things I love, I appreciate them even more.

“The touch of an infinite mystery passes over the trivial and the familiar, making it break out into ineffable music... The trees, the stars, and the blue hills ache with a meaning which can never be uttered in words.” --Rabindranath Tagore