There is nothing like a sister. I have many, and I applaud them for understanding me better than sometimes I understand myself. That takes clarification, I know, so here is my read on how understanding sisters make this cancer adventure truly doable.
First, I have an Indianapolis sister and a Chicago sister. They are biological sisters (we were a gift to our folks every five years between 1945 and 1955) and we three are very connected, with me being the oldest and my Indianapolis sister, the youngest.
My Indianapolis sister prays with me. When I have Monday chemo sessions, we text. It is as if she is sitting in the chair next to me. We pray that I find the strength, courage and peace for which I am so desperately searching. She grasps that God is in my process and accepts my struggle when I feel like staying positive is too big.
Fact is, my two sisters sustain me. They keep me balanced and hold me up. They help me be strong. They have faith I can handle this challenge, and I pray that I may do the same for them someday should they find themselves in my shoes. May that never happen.
Here...it is important to write more on this business of sisterhood because I am a quilting gal and I teach quilt classes. Some have two or three students; others have as many as 14-20 class members. At this point in time, my classes are taught across ZOOM (protection for me during this cancer) and they are marvelous boosters for my morale.
The ladies in these classes take care of me. They are interested. They share their experiences from their own personal cancer journeys. They encourage me, share tips that are extremely helpful, and they listen when I need to talk. Some have initiated a Meal Train (to make sure my husband doesn't starve lol). You should have seen the Thanksgiving dinner we were served, and on a day when I had no energy to do anything, a meal that we enjoyed for more than a week.
My sewing sisters actually extend beyond classes. Some of us have bonded over the past years, sewing together, biking across the summer, even taking road trips to quilt shops far and away. These wonderful ladies remind me to rest, encourage me to eat, laugh with me over silly things like losing my hair, and in the end, are loud and clear that I am not in this alone.
We come to depend on each other. We help each other out with sewing challenges, yes, and we support each other through surgeries, deaths in a family, the loss of our beloved pets, and the pain felt when our children face the life crises we maybe also confronted in our younger years. Everyone needs a listening ear from time to time. It's not just about me.
So, I offer to anyone out there, whether you are walking a cancer path or facing something different, build relationships with your sisters because those relationships will help keep you whole. God works through every single one of those caring people to say, "I love you. You are not alone." And best of all, these gals know that sometimes we don't need to talk...because there are no words. We just need to 'be' together, quietly, holding hands, or hugging each other.
Signed, the quilting cancer gal
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