It’s been sooo long since I last posted, I’m not even sure
where to start. Life has been crazy busy—but I am not complaining. Busy is
always better than bored in my book. So, I have some good news and bad news…and
doesn’t everyone want to start off with bad news? So here goes. At the end of
March, my friend Rachel found a mass on her jaw. It was the strangest thing
because (turns out) it had been there for over a year and it didn’t cause her
any pain. After several weeks of tests, the doctors decided to go ahead and do
surgery to try to remove it. After about 8 hours in surgery, they could only
remove 90% of it because it was entangled with her facial nerves, which, if
cut, could leave her face paralyzed. We made a quick Friday day trip to see Rach
and she looked amazing!!!!! We could not stop talking about how great she
looked after surgery. What a trooper!
So fast forward a few weeks after several trips to doctors
in Abilene and Houston, Rachel got the results that the mass on her jaw was a
malignant tumor. The type of cancer she has is a very long complicated word,
but we like to refer to it as weird cheek cancer. The doctors at MD Anderson
decided that the best plan of action was to do another surgery to remove the
remaining tumor, followed by 8 weeks of radiation in Houston. Now, here is
where the whole plan gets a little tricky. Rachel and her fiancé Wayne were
planning to get married at the beginning of August…which would prove to be a
little bit tricky in the middle of radiation treatment. So, why put off a good
thing, right? Waynechel decided to move the wedding up to June 3rd…About
3 weeks after she got the treatment plan. Those few weeks were CrAzy—complete
with frantic planning, crying, adjusting, phone calls and mass emails (both
wedding & cancer related).
You see, having a 23-year-old friend with cancer is a
tricky, tricky thing. Obviously, no one would choose this path for themselves
or someone they love, so it is a hard pill to swallow. Cancer is just a heavy
word that leaves a pretty nasty taste in your mouth (no pun intended). These
last few weeks/months haven’t been easy for Rachel, Wayne or their families,
but I honestly can’t think of a person with a stronger drive and support system
to face something like this. I am SO thankful that Rachel has Wayne to stand by
her side (as her husband, no less!) through all of the weeks of horrible-ness
to come. It is just another testament to God’s perfect timing. We are all
confident that Rachel is going to pull through this battle cancer-free, and it
will just add to the powerful testimony she will be able to share with people
one day.
So, the wedding I mentioned earlier… it was pretty much the
best weekend ever. Rachel and Wayne’s wedding was on Sunday, June 3rd,
and that blog post is definitely on its way.
Please keep Rachel in your prayers over the next few weeks
as she will be living in Abilene and Houston, undergoing radiation, and trying
to soak up time as a newlywed with her sweet new husband (husband!!!!).
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