Happy Glad to Be Alive Day!: 14th GTBAD Letter

October 22, 2011

Yes, I know that the date on the letter states it's October 22, and we all know it's well past October and is in fact edging towards Thanksgiving. Instead of wishing you just a Happy 14th Glad to Be Alive Day, I'd like to wish you Happy Holidays as well!

I'd like to thank you for your patience in receiving this letter, but this year has been filled with both very good moments and very bad moments, and it's easiest to start with the bad moments and why the letter is late. Late August, early September, I came down with a respiratory virus that basically caused my entire life to stop on a dime. Since that time, I've been sick on and off with days which aren't too bad to days when I don't get out of bed. I was also fortunate enough to spend five days "resting" in the hospital as I received a full tune up to make sure nothing beyond a virus was going on, and after receiving a visit from infectious disease to gastroenterology and continuing care from my fabulous pulmonary team, some great new residents, and my wonderful oncologist, I was given a clean bill of health. Today, I am beginning to feel better, and although I am not back to normal yet what I need now is time to build my strength and lung function back to where they were before. With the past three months being as crummy as they have been, it's been easy to forget the really great year I've been having.

Part of what made the year so great is that I was exceptionally fortunate to complete an internship as a professional and technical writer at the Colorado State University's Animal Cancer Center in Fort Collins over the summer. The ACC, as it's fondly known as, and the many doctors and researchers who work there are responsible for helping to come up with the experimental chemotherapy that I was on fourteen years ago. It's the drug which I credit as saving my life. This summer in many ways was about my own need to give back to the ACC and to learn as much as possible about what they do day in and day out and to get to know the people behind the scenes, the ones who run the ACC, the ones who are teaching, researching, and practicing in the ACC clinic, and those who have found their passion in oncology and are there as residents to specialize. It was the best experience I could have hoped for, and it opened my eyes to how much we take for granted that the ACC is there. That oncological research most often begins in treating animals for cancer before being translated into medicine that will help people like me. I owe a lot to the ACC not only for believing in me and giving me the experiences this summer but for allowing me to celebrate my Glad to Be Alive Day.

While it may seem that this summer was the high point of my year, it isn't. I wrote last year of the culmination of dreams, and I am proud to write to you that I will be:

GRADUATING!!!!

Yes, you did read that correctly. After seven years of on and off again college attendance, with many episodes of illness and discontent, one college change and one change in my major, and an addition of a minor, I have finally excelled in my classes to graduate with honors and end my undergraduate years of college in December. I will have my B.A. in English with an emphasis in professional and technical writing and a minor in American Sign Language. It almost didn't happen. With being sick, I've been juggling my various commitments in life as well as trying not to push myself too far over the edge that I make myself even more sick than I already was, but I was finally able to catch up in my classes thanks to the assistance of my professors and my parents. Mom went back to school this fall, attending classes with me so I could use what energy I had to concentrate on school. It's a relief and amazing! I'm bursting at the seams with excitement!

You might be wondering if I have any plans after graduation, and the answer is no, I'm still figuring out what I want and need to do. Eventually, I will figure it out. I am currently working part time for a great publishing company as their Director of Submissions, meaning that I read and review all the manuscripts that are turned in. It is fun work, and I'm excited to continue to learn about the publishing industry and contribute my small part to the company. That doesn't mean I've ruled out graduate school though.

And that dear friends and family is the greatest part of this 14th Glad to Be Alive Day. The world once more is new and shiny. The possibilities are still endless, and I have so many choices that I can make. It's the beauty of being alive and relatively well. I hope that this year you take the time to see the world in this way even if there aren't any big changes occurring in your life.

As always, thank you for all the support you've given me through the years through the good times and the bad times. I owe my graduation and continued successes in life to you, and for that, I will never be able to show or express my gratitude enough. I hope that his letter finds you and yours well, and as you celebrate your own happiness and warmth in life, I hope that you take time this holiday season to thank the people in your own life for all they do.

Happy 14th Glad to Be Alive Day, Happy Holidays, and Happy Graduation!

Love,

Emily

For the original version of this letter, click here.

Two months after this letter was written, I received my diploma from the University of Colorado.