Do you consider yourself lucky? I used to think I was a really unlucky person, and I had a lot of proof. I had never won anything in my life. You know those people who always win party prizes over and over? That was never me. No matter what drawing or contest I entered, luck never seemed to be on my side. It started early. I used to spend summers on the Jersey Shore with my grandparents, and my grandfather loved entertaining my sister and me. He would take us fishing, play Skeeball in the penny arcade, and stroll the...
Which came first– gratitude or success? Chances are that growing up you learned that the more success you would have in life, the happier you would be. Somewhere along the way I believed that too, so I set my life up to create the ultimate happiness. I accumulated it all– the degrees, the friends, a husband, a home, and the perfect dental career. Eventually I learned the joke was on me. I found myself living this successful life, but I was unhappy, and I couldn’t feel grateful for all of the wonderful “things” I had. It turns out, success does...
Last Thursday I had a really good cry. I can assure you it was a good, long, ugly cry. And it felt so good. That day was the one-year anniversary of my last targeted chemotherapy infusion. It’s been quite a year, a tough one for many. But given how 2019 was for me, 2020 has been a breeze. I’ve been happy. It seems almost suspiciously happy, the kind of happy that you don’t think is humanly possible. Most of the time it’s a carefree feeling. I’ve not been bothered by the small things, and when I am, I can quickly...
Happy New Year! How was this holiday season for you? This New Year in particular was very unique for me. It felt different from all the others. Since I spent the week recovering from my final round of chemotherapy, the actual New Year was far from my mind. I remained isolated from most human contact throughout the whole week. My only source of human interaction was social media (which I don’t recommend, by the way.) As I saw all the posts of my network’s reflections, recaps, and resolutions, I felt even more disconnected from the hype. I watched the New...
