A picture paints a thousand words…but I’ll have 500 more to add!

8:15 Sunday morning, prior to the "race"

Mike selfie with Megan, Avery and Lola

Tracy and Maggie and Me

We did it! Betty, Glenda, Maggie, Eddie and me at the finish line!

I wish I had gotten a group picture with all our group…if someone has one, please send it my way and I’ll post it…or if you are missing and have a picture of you on the walk, send it, I’ll post it. I know Jenni, Joe, Emma and Mason are missing as are Danielle, Megan, Avery and Lola (though Megan, Avery and Lola are in Mikes selfie…no selfie stick needed!) I know Sandy did not get in the pic...any one else?? So, send me photos, email or text. I’d love to see them.

As you can tell is was a beautiful day and a great time was had by all…here is a few of us getting cold drinks in the neighborhood after the walk. After this as we headed off to our cars we got to see the kids run...talk about adorable! But I could hardly watch, waiting for someone to bite the asphalt!!

As if that was not enough fun for one day, check out my afternoon!

Many of my K/1 kids from 02-04
Class of 2015!
I look a little manic...it's pure bliss!

What's better than a selfie...the photo of the selfie!

The proud and the happy! Many soon to be empty nesters in this group.

Double cedars

What a day! Connie R. organized this event at Camp Long and all kids from that Salmon Clan class were invited (as least all the ones we could find, there were a few who had moved from the city). You can see why my cancer is slipping away, I am surrounded by positive energy and love! 

Roz, my dear friend and Sophie and Livvy’s mom, came into our class on a regular basis to teach us yoga. At the end of each year we published a yoga book. Each student practiced a specific pose, we photographed them, they wrote a poem about the pose and did a water color painting expressing how yoga or that pose made them feel. These books are a treasure! One from Kindergarten and one from First Grade. So, on Sunday we had them recreate the pose and many of them wrote poems as well. There poems are heartfelt and dear! We'll be creating another treasure! In the first grade book there is a photo of Roz and me doing the double tree pose, so of course we had to recreate our pose as well. What a special group of parents and kids. 

I’m hoping this will start a tradition, every two years getting the graduating salmon and their families back together! Whose next?

But the day was not over…Mike and Gillian invited us over for a fabulous copper river salmon dinner to talk about more detailed plans for Dublin, where we will share an apartment with them for 3 nights. Lots of fun to look forward to.

Thanks to everyone for such a great day! I’m so glad that I was able to attend all events and remain upright!

Monday was a busy day with appointments, then I had chemo yesterday…so this week I am missing some important events. Last night I was not able to go to West Seattle High School graduation, Friday night I’ll miss 8th grade graduation at Pathfinder (where some of my fabulous salmon will be graduating this year!) and I’ll miss Sealth graduation on Saturday where two of my former students share valedictorian and one is the salutatorian. In fact many of those students in the photos are taking home handsome awards and heading off to amazing places! This was a formidable group…they will do great things! So proud of them! They inspire me to want to go back and continue my work! 

I have to focus on the positive…I had a fabulous weekend with so many great events, if I have to miss some this week, then that is just the way it goes.

Back to chemo…Betty finally got to go with me, the last time she tried she ended up in the hospital with high blood pressure and a heart scare…but she is doing fine now! We took letters with us that I had saved from college from her and a few other good friends: Mig, Marsena, Sarah and Mary B. There were a few times we could not stop laughing, we made a “burn pile” and had to pass things back and forth that we just couldn’t bear to read out loud! Oh my! That first semester of college…no text, no FB, no email, very expensive long distance, and we were poor girls…so lots and lots of letters. We wrote things we would never trust to social media or even text or emails! I have to say I’m glad Betty does not think she has the letters I sent to her! Ppppwweesssshhh! I don’t really want to know what I said! I’ll leave that up to what is left of my memory and my imagination. The time flew right by. My chemo nurse was about our age and shared some stories of her own! She was a hoot!

So day after chemo is today…laying real low with my buddy Wilson. We’ve had to start a whole new level of desensitizing him now that we’ve had this heat spell and the windows are flung open. He hears every little thing and is quite sure it is dangerous…we are working through it! So one last photo as I sit here with Wilson swaddled in my arms to protect him from the cars on the gravel alley and the crazy barking/howling dogs up the street.

Three weeks to recover from chemo, trip to ireland, a PET scan shortly after we return and then...we'll just have to see. The only thing the good doctor would say for sure, is if there is any cancer left I will have no more epirubicin...I've just hit my limit and it would pose too big a threat on my heart to have more. So if there is cancer...I have no idea what he'll do, he is not a speculator! If there is no cancer...I have quite a bit to do!

Love, light, strength, peace, hope to you all!

I would not be this far along without you!

Janet~who is very nearly cancer free as far as we can tell!