Friendships take on a whole new life after finishing full-time school. Once I entered the work force, I noticed my friendships slowly became a choice rather than an obligation. Instead of maintaining friendships with people I saw everyday at school, or who conveniently lived down the street, friendships became something I conscientiously worked on. Sadly, this meant that I lost a lot of friends.
But, it also meant I gained a lot of friends. Being diagnosed with cancer helped me to replace friendships I had grown out of with people I could grow with. I've made countless friends in the year and a half since my diagnosis, through the clinic at Princess Margaret Hospital, at my young adults with lymphoma support group, at a retreat in Newfoundland, and even a blogging friend through the internet.
This week, my blogging friend told me she was attending another retreat in September with First Descents. I had heard about these adventure retreats before, but it wasn't until learning a survivor friend was going that I considered going myself. The decision wasn't a hard one to make. This September, us and a whole group of friends-waiting-to-be-made will be rock climbing in the Colorado River in Utah. Who would have thought that'd be something I'd ever do?!
I give full credit to my friend for encouraging and supporting my endeavour - and to all my cancer friends for always encouraging and supporting all of each other's endeavours! Without these people in my life, cancer would have been a lonely, isolating and embittering experience. With them, however, cancer survival has become an opportunity waiting to be seized.
Rock climbing, here I come!!!
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