I am so blessed by having so many wonderful people in my life!

Yesterday was truly an inspiration to me and gave me a significant boost to do everything I can to win this battle against cancer. I want to live a long life so that I can not only repay all of the kindness that has been shown to me but also do for others who don’t even know me. At Leadership Studies and Programs we emphasize service to others as one of the main objectives of true leadership. In fact we teach a whole section on servant leadership based on the idea that leaders must start with the desire to serve others. Then we make a conscious choice to aspire to lead. Maybe the world has conspired to teach me about servant leadership in a way that I could never have imagined. I have been blessed in the last three months to have one servant leader after another in my life. Thank you to all!

My nieces Rebecca and Jody joined Nancy and me at KU Med for my fourth chemo treatment and the last of the Red Devil. Of course, they came bearing gifts, lots of laughs, and lots of LOVE. They brought balloons, cupcakes (from Aunt Mary’s Bakery), cards, a St Louis Cardinal baseball cap (that gift was definitely influenced by Jody’s husband Tim), and a gift from all my nieces and nephews that brought TEARS to my eyes. They gave me a precious memories photo album that contained some of their favorite photos as well as notes about our lives together. They truly surprised me with the gift even though Jody said I asked her what it was at Mom’s birthday party on July 7th. I have no recollection of even seeing the box that she was holding – that is what chemo brain will do to you. Anyway, it is the BEST GIFT IN THE WORLD! Thanks to Jody and Tim; John, Stacia, and Natalie; Alicia; Rebecca; Adam; Joey, Kelly, Garrett, and Anna; Matt, Lori, and Hallie; and Kevin and Sharon. You mean the world to me! And, of course, Nancy and I will provide childcare any time you need it!

The first photo below is the first page from the album – tears started to form in my eyes as I read it. The second photo is from Jody – I guess we are exposing some of our family secrets, but I don’t think too many of you who really know us will be surprised. Each of one of my nieces and nephews wrote a very special note to me and, of course, each one brought laughs and tears while I read them. I will share some of the others in the future, but I will start with Jody’s top-ten list. You can 'click' on each photo and it will appear larger in a new window. Just hit the back button when you are finished. I am assuming each computer works like mine.

In addition to the gifts from Jody and Rebecca, I had a couple other gifts that Nancy gave me during the chemo injection. Nancy gave me red pajamas and a silver bracelet. I guess she is tired of me lounging around the house in my grungy old clothes. The red pajamas remind me of my Dorrance Cardinals days, our main color was red. Are there any other Dorrance Cardinals out there and can you remember our fight song?

I received another very special gift during chemo from my special friends Andrea and Sue. They gave me a pink plaque (or stepping stone) that includes the breast cancer ribbon and the saying Find A Cure. Andrea and Sue have been so supportive of me during this journey by giving me food, organizing the hat garden, giving me breast cancer ribbons, and a host of other types of support. When I mentioned servant leadership in my first paragraph, I certainly put them in this category. Sue works with me at Leadership Studies and Andrea is the Director of Disability Support Services at K-State.

It seems amazing to me that I have written so much about my visit to KU Med on Tuesday and I have not mentioned anything about the doctor visit. Dr. Sharma could no longer locate my tumor by physical touch so she ordered an ultrasound to check on the size and location of the remaining tumor. That extra appointment at 1:30 delayed my chemo and we did not get chemo finished until 6:30. Anyway, based on the photo that I saw (Nancy and Jody can attest to this) of my ultrasound, I am announcing that I have been mis-diagnosed. The ultrasound picture clearly showed the outline of a handgun in my breast. It’s true! I have handgun implanted in my breast instead of a cancer tumor!! Ok, so maybe I am embellishing a little bit, but the tumor sure did look like the outline of a pistol in one of the views on the ultrasound. We’ll see what happens next time I go through security at the airport. I will try to get a photo of that ultrasound shot to share with you.

The tumor is shrinking, but is it still clearly there on the ultrasound. It is located near my chest wall and is now described as long and flat as opposed to circular when I first found it. I will now switch chemo drugs and take four treatments of Taxol every two weeks. HOPEFULLY, Taxol will be less taxing on my body. My chemo nurse said I will not have to take anywhere near the anti-nausea drugs that I took with Adriamycin (red devil) and Cytoxan. Then I decide on the type of surgery in October – lumpectomy or ‘off with the bad-behaving breasts.’ If I have a lumpectomy, I will need radiation treatment.

When Nancy and I returned home at 9:00 pm from the very long day at KU Med, our friends Heather and Mike Reed were at our house (thanks to Candi for letting them in) with a western-Kansas meal of chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, rolls, and an Oreo frozen dessert!!!! Are any of you getting hungry just thinking about this meal? They also brought me a cool cap - sort of French looking. Heather is an Assistant Dean in the Office of Student Life and she also teaches a class for us at Leadership Studies. Mike works at Community First National Bank in Manhattan – it just happens to be where Nancy and I bank! In Heather and Mike’s free time, they also own Prime-Time Fitness. I know all of you will want to know their secrets to finding energy to do all of that work. I think it has something to do with their commitment to physical health!!

My 47th birthday was truly special even though I had to take chemo on this day – in the bigger picture that was probably special, too. Thanks to all who sent cards, gifts, and emails. It sounds cliché, but there really aren’t words to share how grateful I am to have you in my life.

Love to all,
Mary Kay