Moving On

Well, to those that have still turned to this page to see if I have updated my blog, again, I am sorry for neglecting you. Last Saturday was the fourth and last day that I received my chemotherapy. At least according to my doctor. I have been very fortunate up to this point in both my life and treatments. My praises to the nurses at Long Beach Memorial, from the ER to the Oncology Department. The thing that I appreciated most was how the nurses never really treated me like a patient. From allowing me to wear street cloths in the hospital because I hated wearing gowns, to eating lunch in the staff room with the others, talking like I was one of them. All of these little things compounded into helping me adapt to what I have been facing. The next phase of the treatment involves UCLA. I am still awaiting a phone call from Laura, my nurse coordinator. Thank you for all the support and stuff ; ). Your welcome Gillian!!!! Thank you for reminding me that there are people out there still reading this page.

Round Three

I apologize for being absent over the past week or so. As many as you know, I went back up to San Francisco to get away for a little while. I had a wonderful time in Northern California. The weather was absolutely perfect. I could not have asked for anything more. During my stay, my grandmother, Nanajan Enwia passed away. She had spent 102 years on this earth, 99 according to an unofficial birth certificate. She was my second mother. Her funeral is scheduled for tomorrow. I will have the honor of reading a letter my father wrote from Iraq. Unfortunately, he will not be able to attend, however, through myself, as well as others, he will. I am gearing up to leave Long Beach Memorial after my third round of treatment. I don't want to speak to soon, but I am feeling stronger and stronger everyday. Aside from the usual side effects from the chemicals, I find myself not only becoming physically stronger, but mentally as well. I sat down with a student earlier today. She is getting her masters in social work. Part of her field time is to interview patients and develop a solid foundation for her future in the field. It was the first time in a couple of months that I had the opportunity to sit down with a third party member and discuss my journey without fear of judgment or bias. We discussed how it feels to enter into this type of challenge, how I feel about my upcoming bone marrow treatment, and in general, how I believe I can grow from this experience. Even though it was an educational experience for her, I found it to be therapeutic on my behalf. Listening to the words that were spilling from my mouth, I could tell that something had changed within me. We all have challenges in life, regardless the severity, the challenge isn't worth the journey unless you grow from it.