Your Change of Plans

Cancer Was an Awakening

In 2000 we discovered a lump in my right breast. We had a young son and I couldn't imagine leaving him without a mother. My husband and I discussed this one night when I was unable to sleep, and we decided to ask for a biopsy. Just to ease my worry.

As it turned out, the lump that felt like the end of a pencil eraser, was about the size of a golf ball. It was full of cancer cells.

[Now] everything [is] fine. Seven years out and still clear. That is amazing to me. This entire ordeal has been an awakening of sorts for me. It brought home my mortality. I cherish every single day that I have with my husband and our son. Little things mean so much more than they ever did. Life is good.
--bubbysmommy

From Prison, a New Calling

My youngest daughter (I have three) is in prison. She went in when she was 19 years old. She's now 27. She's serving 10 years for armed robbery. It's been a long and rough eight years. She went from being a teenager on the verge of adulthood to a prison inmate.

There have been some positives about her being in prison. I've found my calling in this lifetime. I'm a volunteer in the Kairos Prison Ministry and am now studying to be a minister. It is such a joy to go into prison and talk to the ladies in there. Also, my daughter has found her calling. She wants to be a psychologist when she's released and help others deal with their problems, especially children. I'll do all in my power to see that she goes to college. God has given her spiritual gifts that she's using in prison to help others. I just wish she would use them for herself.
--willetta

One Door Closes, Another Opens

I received my 90-day plant closing letter on Saturday, stating that my job and plant that I have been working for 26 years is closing because they are moving our work down to Mexico.

I know that this isn't the end of the world for me because I know that God closes one door to open another door. A part of me is looking forward to what the future has in store for me and another part of me is really scared but I know in my heart that what is happening is for the best for me. Now I can [fulfill] my lifelong plan of moving to Georgia and going back to school to get my degree in communications. I know that life is meant to be lived to the fullest and that one has to have faith in the divine in order to get through life.
--Norma540

'In Sickness and in Health...'

In 2004, I suffered a cerebral aneurysm. My family was told I had a 50/50 chance of survival. After about three weeks I came home to struggle to return to my old self. I am proud to say, I never found the old Judy. Once a workaholic and perfectionist, my goal in life now is to enjoy life everyday.

I remember getting out of the hospital. Stanley was bringing me home--a place I hadn't seen in about 4 weeks. I got tired so easy. It made me sad. I had always prided myself on the fact that I could do anything I put my mind to. I would never be dependent on anyone but me. But...guess what? This man became my support--physically and mentally. I apologized to him one day and this was his reply: "I vowed, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer." And he stuck by those vows. Always has.
--judymae1401

From Military Dad to Caregiver

I have a handicapped son and I am his caregiver. For the first 20 years of his life, I was in the military and there was not a lot of allowance for family problems getting in the way of what the military wanted of me, so my wife took the hits. Her schooling and career [were] curtailed by his care. When I retired from the military we switched. Now I'm the homemaker and caregiver, allowing her to get two degrees and lots of progression in her fields. It's not so bad. I do spot jobs on the internet. But I do refer to him as my ball-and-chain. He decides what time I get up, therefore what time I go to bed. My schedule, my diet, my social activities are decided by him.
--Gandalf_Parker