It's Cap and Gown Time

How about a nice bottle of champagne?

It's graduation day!

No, Rachel has not finished her homeschool course for the year. She has about 14-16 weeks worth of work to go, depending on the subject, as long as she keeps up!

It's me.

I'm the graduate.

While it is not quite my 4 year cancer-versary, and obviously a bit more until that "magical" 5 year mark, my breast surgeon is allowing me to graduate to annual appointments. One less appointment to schedule and reschedule is a blessing! She's a tough one to get an appointment with... my appointment today was 2 months late for a 6 month check-up. Couldn't even get one for 6 months out when I left last time, and then 7 months turned into 8 when they rescheduled. Par for the course. But, I'd much rather give that precious appointment time to someone that really needs it. I still have an oncologist and an internist examining me at regular interals... at least for now.... and a plastic surgeon and a gyn-onc who probably expect to see me again one of these days.

In some ways, moving further down the road in the journey is disconcerting. There's the feeling of waiting for the other shoe to drop. There's the sorrow over learning a friend is near the end of her days. There are women I know who were diagnosed around the same time I was who are fighting metastatic disease. Worse, there are those who now just live in our memories. A little survivor guilt mixed in with the normal fears. The last time I felt so content with my life, the shoe dropped and this detour began.

It all leads to a more cautious celebration, but still a celebration. I choose to celebrate all of it. Every day. Every minute. I am here to talk about it thanks to a so-called routine mammogram that I might have had to fight to get today.