Category Archives: cancer

Prairie View

Posted on June 28, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

This is the first week since treatment started March 1 that I have not left the farm. I still go up and down the stairs several times a day and venture out to my garden and back, but I think … Continue reading →

Posted in cancer, garden, prairie | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Fertility (2)

Posted on June 26, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

Back when I was first contemplating the pregnant woman hanging clothes in Sophia’s painting, I was also contemplating my own family history with fertility. I’m the first in my family (as far as I know) to be diagnosed with a … Continue reading →

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Home and the Eating is Good

Posted on June 21, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

I got back home on Saturday and although I had a cold I needed to tend to (thank you Airborne, cold caps at night, and Tylenol now and then to make sure I didn’t get a fever), I was determined … Continue reading →

Posted in cancer, garden | 3 Comments

Check-in

Posted on June 16, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

Greetings from St. Mary’s College in South Bend, Indiana. Or, more specifically, the Inn at St. Mary’s, a beautiful hotel on the edge of campus where I’ve been staying since Sunday. I’m here all week giving talks on The Saint John’s … Continue reading →

Posted in cancer, The Saint John's Bible, travel | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Thursdays

Posted on June 11, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

Up until Memorial Day, my chemotherapy treatments were on Tuesdays and Thursdays were my worst days in terms of recovery. I called them my “down days.” I meant that I was down on the couch, not that I was feeling … Continue reading →

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At the Cancer Hospital (2)

Posted on June 7, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

This “triple whammy” week has been challenging, but not in the way I thought it might be. Everything was harsher and a little longer than usual, but the side effects are still mostly annoying and not painful. I had some … Continue reading →

Posted in cancer, St. Joseph | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Garden

Posted on June 5, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

My sister came to help me this week, during a challenging round of chemotherapy. Since the beginning I’ve been doing everything possible to stay healthy for a week-long conference at St. Mary’s College in South Bend, where I’m the afternoon … Continue reading →

Posted in cancer, garden, prairie | Tagged , , , | 11 Comments

Avatar

Posted on June 1, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

I still like what I see in the mirror. Being bald hasn’t bothered me, though it’s always surprising. Because I never properly shaved my head, I have funny little silver hairs that stick up over much of my scalp. They … Continue reading →

Posted in cancer | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Oncology

Posted on May 27, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

I’ve been thinking about oncologists lately. I think it’s hard for most of us to imagine a “call” to oncology, or choosing oncology as a specialty, if we ever think about becoming doctors at all. So much bad news to … Continue reading →

Posted in art, cancer | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Chemo Buddies

Posted on May 26, 2016 by susanmsink@gmail.com

I remember the first treatment, when I had expected to be sitting in a big room or rows of chairs getting chemo with a bunch of patients, and it turned out we each had our own room, thinking: “How am I … Continue reading →

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