It’s a new morn, my slate is clean, nothing comes to mind.  What if one day I couldn’t write the blog because I had nothing to say?  Is that happening today?   No, that little breeze will blow in an idea.

Ah, there it is.  As I travel around with the film I get a chance to get up in front of folks and send my insights their way.  One of the things that is a challenge for me in this process is trying to keep my talk light and positive and funny.  After dealing with my and other people’s cancer for five years I had to get to a place that was sustainable.  The topic is so heavy and laced with so much fear and dread that no one can be in that place for long and survive.  I needed sort of a halfway house to exist in, to live out of.

So developing a way that was workable but not glib became a goal.  It was hard to strike a balance and one of the keys is to openly acknowledge those that are having a hard time with their cancer.  I feel totally blessed that my walk is so what?  It isn’t easy but it is doable, there is a pathway forward.  And it is especially important to acknowledge the young people and their families that are so challenged with their cancer.

In that vein, I have to introduce you to Suzanne, one of my nurses extraordinaire.  She is like the Clark Kent of my world.  Oncology nurse by day, project fund riser by night.  I really have not met many people in my life with that kind of devotion and dedication.  She is the main driving force behind Ladybug House, a dream for tomorrow.

Ladybug House is modeled after facilities elsewhere. There is nothing like this in our region though.  It would provide a place where a young person fighting cancer could both have treatment and have a life.  It isn’t a hospital, it is more homey than that.  It isn’t a hospice, although it may at times function as one.  It is a place of community where these challenged youths can be as much like who they are supposed to be as possible.   There is nothing like it in our immediate experience so it is not easy to describe but a nurse who has worked with literally thousand of cancer patients can see it.   This is Ladybug House in Suzanne’s imagination.   She has been working on this for something like twenty years but so many connections have to be made, so much treasure has to be found for it to become a reality.

I have no time or money myself and all I can do really is be her friend and put in a good word for her.   We are all in the trenches of our lives in one way or another.  Being there for each other is important and always appreciated.  We ar Caminoheads are here for you Suzanne!

Off I go, being here for each other loves, Felipe.