Do I Look Like I Have Cancer?

It is hard to tell from this picture, isn't it? I look healthy and happy, hair blowing in the wind on a beautiful day at the beach. It is crazy how from the outside, things look one way, but in reality, they are quite different.

Blessed to be feeling good and near the ocean. My happy place!

I have had two rounds of chemo, with four more to go, and then surgery, to be cured from stage 2 HER2 breast cancer. But on the outside, most of the time, I look healthy and happy and well, normal.

Well, what really is normal?

When we walk through life, we see people as we choose to see them, or how our eyes see them, or how we categorize them according to who we are and the life we live. Simply, this is called judgment. And none of us are immune to the judgment of other people.

Part of it is how we are raised, the belief systems that we were taught from a young age. Some of it is society. And some of it is, sadly, the reality of the way the world rolls here in 2026.

The Reality of Chemotherapy That You Cannot See

Truth be told, I look like this some days. Usually the first five days after I have my treatment, and the last five days before I start the next. Those 10-11 days in between are often quite shitty. Literally.

I know…I tend to talk a lot about shit these days. Just ask my poor husband!

The truth is, that is what chemo has done to my body. I measure every day by what I can eat, what I can’t eat, and what that does to me in some pretty awful ways. These days I rely on a pile of meds to help me manage the symptoms. Some I take to get ahead of them. Some I take to get through them. And others I take to try to soothe my body after the effects have ravaged it.

My daily cocktail of meds…

I don’t write this for pity. That is a four letter word I detest. I share it because it’s a fact: you cannot see what is going on inside another human. You can only see how they present themselves and what the world sees of them.

What If We Assumed Everyone Was Fighting Something?

Part of me wonders, if we approached every other human we encounter during a day as if a part of them was sick or broken, would we embrace them with more kindness? Would we grant them an extra sweet word or a few minutes in conversation? Would we smile at them and tell them we will pray for them?

Yep, that is can feel pretty awkward, and for most of us, may be just plain weird. But what if we stepped outside of our comfort zone just once and saw how it went? If people do not flip us off and chase us down the street, maybe it worked. And maybe that kindness will get multiplied to the next person and the next. ShineForward✨

I don’t know about you, but there is a lot happening in the world that is hard for me to watch. I avoid it rather than face it, because the pain of the circumstances around us are sometimes too much to bear. And as a person going through her own physical challenges, I try to insulate myself as best I can so that my energy is good, positive and focused on light rather than darkness. It’s a choice I choose to make every day, and sometimes hour by hour…minute by minute.

Faith, Grief, and Why I Keep Going

I am blessed because although I have bad days and my intestinal tract hates me at times, my side overall are mild compared to others who have walked the same journey. And I am so grateful for this!

But when the days get hard, I know I can keep going. Because Caroline did, I can.

If you are late to this party and you are just getting to know me, Caroline was my oldest daughter. She was diagnosed with pediatric cancer at just 4 years old, and we would lose her three years later. She was just a baby. But she did not complain. She did everything that was asked of her.

I was a contributor in the process to cure her that put her through very similar and sometimes worse side effects. She trusted that we were doing everything we could to make her better. And she accepted.

I trust that God is walking with me on this journey. And He is asking me to be brave and to accept that He will take care of me. He will carry me through the hard days and bring me to a cure. It is the faith of the past 25 years and how He has delivered me time after time that lets me know He will.

Signing Off from Longboat Key

As I’m finishing my three mile walk on Longboat Key (voice recording as usual:), I am grateful for the amazing angels in my life who care for me in so many different ways. You all know who you are, and if not, I am telling you: I love you, and it matters💞.

I am enjoying the sun, the sea, and the most beautiful camaraderie with a friend of 46 years. These will shore up my soul and my body to take on round three and to keep fighting this fight.

Because I have got a lot to do in this life. And I am hoping you will join me for all of it for years to come!

Signing off from Longboat Key and praying you have the courage to share kindness today with someone who may not look on the outside like the battles they may be facing on the inside.

We can do this together.

We can ShineForward✨

Until next time friends
Karen