Jennifer
Back in Oct of 2007 as I was preparing to leave The Cancer Treatment Center of America, I was blessed to meet a young lady named Jennifer. She was being treated for advanced pancreatic cancer and even though her body was fragile, her heart, mind and soul were strong. In the 40 minutes I was able to spend with Jennifer, I learned many life lessons that I would like to share.
Jennifer was concerned that day about a lady who came to the Center every three weeks for outpatient chemo. Each trip was routine and until this time nothing out of the ordinary. On this particular trip the lady received news that her cancer had come back and it was aggressive. The reason for Jennifer’s concern was that the lady traveled alone this time which meant there was no one there to share her sorrow. Jennifer asked my aunt and I to pray for this lady as she traveled home. I often recall that day from three years ago and a quote from Zig Ziglar always comes to mind and it goes like this “to get what you want out of life you first have to help enough other people get what they want.” Jennifer was determined to find a way to give that lady what she wanted and needed that day which was love and a caring shoulder to lean on. Never take for granted those people around you because you never know how heavy the shoes are that they walk in.
As I was walking out the door Jennifer had one last thing to say to me, she said that we were going to celebrate our five year survival from cancer together. Please understand that this was a lady (Jennifer) whose own health was a grave issue. Even so she gave me the courage to live for the moment. So many times in life we get so caught up in the past that we can’t see the life that is before us. Or we look too far to the future at some elusive date or event that we forget to live in the present. Jennifer taught me to have hope in the now because this moment is all we have. When I remember the song “Love the one your with” I think of this because Jennifer truly loved the person she was with at that moment.
As we sat in the limo waiting for the ride back to the airport after several minutes I ask the driver what the hold up was. He said that he got a call that one more person needed to make the trip with us. Finally a lady came out and got into the limo. She was alone and seemed lost in thought. On the trip I decided to engage her and see if there was any comfort I could possibly offer. She shared with me that she came to the center every three weeks for chemo treatment. On this particular trip her husband could not make it so she traveled alone. She went on to tell us that her cancer had come back and receiving that news alone was almost to heavy to bare. This was the lady Jennifer spoke of. Oh how God works in mysterious ways. The next 45 minutes we laughed and cried about life. I am confident that for a brief moment we were able to take away some pain. Once again the life lesson from Jennifer was to live in the moment. We could have rode silently to the airport and the pain of dealing with cancer would have consumed all of our thoughts. We all chose to speak up and learn that life is better when shared with people that care.
Three weeks after my short encounter with Jennifer I received a call from her sister and she said that Jennifer wanted to speak with me. Jennifer was very weak on the phone and with her heart of gold and deep love for people, she told me that she was going to have to cancel that date for the five year reunion due to the fact that God had different plans. She told me to keep the fight alive and always give God your best because in him hope lives. Jennifer went to her eternal home one hour later.
I know that God sent me an angel when I was at a low point in life. As I write this, my memory of Jennifer brings a smile to my face. I bet you have a Jennifer in your life; you just might not be in tune to them. Take a look around and you will see the angels flying high and preparing your character to live today for today. Never miss a moment to share a smile or a kind word and who knows someone just may share the same back to you.
Life is great when you are livin a dream
Dale Childress
Jennifer was concerned that day about a lady who came to the Center every three weeks for outpatient chemo. Each trip was routine and until this time nothing out of the ordinary. On this particular trip the lady received news that her cancer had come back and it was aggressive. The reason for Jennifer’s concern was that the lady traveled alone this time which meant there was no one there to share her sorrow. Jennifer asked my aunt and I to pray for this lady as she traveled home. I often recall that day from three years ago and a quote from Zig Ziglar always comes to mind and it goes like this “to get what you want out of life you first have to help enough other people get what they want.” Jennifer was determined to find a way to give that lady what she wanted and needed that day which was love and a caring shoulder to lean on. Never take for granted those people around you because you never know how heavy the shoes are that they walk in.
As I was walking out the door Jennifer had one last thing to say to me, she said that we were going to celebrate our five year survival from cancer together. Please understand that this was a lady (Jennifer) whose own health was a grave issue. Even so she gave me the courage to live for the moment. So many times in life we get so caught up in the past that we can’t see the life that is before us. Or we look too far to the future at some elusive date or event that we forget to live in the present. Jennifer taught me to have hope in the now because this moment is all we have. When I remember the song “Love the one your with” I think of this because Jennifer truly loved the person she was with at that moment.
As we sat in the limo waiting for the ride back to the airport after several minutes I ask the driver what the hold up was. He said that he got a call that one more person needed to make the trip with us. Finally a lady came out and got into the limo. She was alone and seemed lost in thought. On the trip I decided to engage her and see if there was any comfort I could possibly offer. She shared with me that she came to the center every three weeks for chemo treatment. On this particular trip her husband could not make it so she traveled alone. She went on to tell us that her cancer had come back and receiving that news alone was almost to heavy to bare. This was the lady Jennifer spoke of. Oh how God works in mysterious ways. The next 45 minutes we laughed and cried about life. I am confident that for a brief moment we were able to take away some pain. Once again the life lesson from Jennifer was to live in the moment. We could have rode silently to the airport and the pain of dealing with cancer would have consumed all of our thoughts. We all chose to speak up and learn that life is better when shared with people that care.
Three weeks after my short encounter with Jennifer I received a call from her sister and she said that Jennifer wanted to speak with me. Jennifer was very weak on the phone and with her heart of gold and deep love for people, she told me that she was going to have to cancel that date for the five year reunion due to the fact that God had different plans. She told me to keep the fight alive and always give God your best because in him hope lives. Jennifer went to her eternal home one hour later.
I know that God sent me an angel when I was at a low point in life. As I write this, my memory of Jennifer brings a smile to my face. I bet you have a Jennifer in your life; you just might not be in tune to them. Take a look around and you will see the angels flying high and preparing your character to live today for today. Never miss a moment to share a smile or a kind word and who knows someone just may share the same back to you.
Life is great when you are livin a dream
Dale Childress
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