Yesterday....

 

Yesterday I spent the day in Fargo visiting my friend who is currently undergoing chemotherapy for her non-hodgkins cancer. She was currently diagnosed within the last few weeks...when at a regular checkup for her the beginning of May she brought up her leg cramps, labs started to determine what the problem was.  After doing labs and tests, a month later, the diagnosis came in....the next week, chemo started.  Yesterday was Sarah's second round of treatment.  She has a total of 9 treatments-- going throughout now and October.

 I met Sarah my freshman year of college.  I got my letter in the mail with the name of my roommate for the fall. We started writing letters and a few weeks later we stood facing each other in our dorm room meeting for the first time.  I remember something that stood out about Sarah was our first meal eating at the cafeteria. We sat down and Sarah bowed her head to pray. It stood out because that wasn't something seen very often at a public university.  I was impressed... We spent that year going through our first year of college together and figuring out our classes and the college routine...those 4 or 5 years went by and I applied for my first teaching job in 2009..I starting teaching in Rosholt and Sarah happened to be going to college 30 miles away for another year.  My second week of school ended on Labor Day and she came to visit for the weekend.  I briefly told her about Andrew, who I had seen 2 days earlier when he came to see me for the first time. I told her that I just "might" like this guy.  She smiled as I told her about him.....  :)  She spent the weekend helping me with teacher things: cutting out things, correcting papers, bulletin board projects, etc..  Then a year later, she graduated from college and moved onto Jamestown to start her career as a nurse.  We have emailed and written letters back and forth with each other since then...

Whenever a holiday or birthday comes- Sarah is one to remember it.  When Ruthanna was born last August, a box came a week later with a beautiful crocheted blanket and nicely sew blankets and burp rags...everytime we bring those out to use, I think of her.

So, in May, an email came and said how she was doctoring and having CT scans and PET scans of different things. Ever so positively she said "it looks like it might be cancer."  The last 2 months of all the tests, scans, labs, etc, Sarah has remained positive with everything that has come her way.  I remember one phone call early on and her saying "well a good thing is it will strengthen our faith." 

So, yesterday I wanted to venture up and sit with her during chemotherapy. I was in the waiting room when she came out of her checkup and was greeted with a big smile on her face.  The day was great and we made up for lost time...I hadn't realized it had been 2  1/2  years since I had seen her.   We spent the day visiting from 8-5 at the hospital and then finished the day with eating at the mall and a little shopping before we parted ways.

To follow her story, go to caring bridge and type saraheppen as the site.