Author Archives: Emily

increasing the happy

There are moments – increasing in frequency and intensity – when I am amazed at the depth of my happiness.  The happiness I know now is richer, more substantial, than anything I knew before cancer.  This weekend, not unexpectedly, was … Continue reading

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everything that rises must converge

This phrase, from Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, via Flannery O’Connor, came into my head this afternoon as I strolled through my new neighborhood and thought, as I inevitably do, about First Descents.  The words struck me hard, with precision, though … Continue reading

Posted in First Descents, Life After Cancer, running, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

a cyborg no more (or, so long, chest port)

This morning, I reported to the Pereleman Center at HUP to finally – almost two years after finishing chemotherapy – have my chest port removed.  This small metal disc with the rubbery center and skinny little tube has been nestled … Continue reading

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first descents, take two: a boundless blessing

Three days ago, I unpacked from a week in Moab, Utah with First Descents.  Tonight, I should be packing again, but instead I am sitting in my pajamas, fumbling with words.  It’s overdue.  It’s late, and I am tired. Back … Continue reading

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they won’t go gently

My head is in a fog of allergies, moving and other assorted chaos – both internal and external.  We are finally in our new home, and I am ecstatic.  After just the first few days, life in the swamps of … Continue reading

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the very essence of me

You know you are a dedicated blogger when, after puking your guts out at 2 AM, you think,  “This is going to be great material for my next post.”   Welcome to my world. I will spare you the details … Continue reading

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does my cancer offend you? tough s*&#!

I generally don’t spend much time reading random comments from anonymous folks on the Internet – in response to blogs, news bits, whatever – but today, I took a peek over at my ovarian sister Donna Trussell‘s latest cartoon, and … Continue reading

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possibility and promise

Yesterday, I spent a little time in the garden, pulling out the remaining dead growth from last year.  Although I will no longer be tending this garden, I wanted to make sure that all of the living things that are … Continue reading

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the lynch syndrome, with apologies

Some things are just plain unexpected.  Or are they? Yesterday, when the rain-soaked mail fell through the slot in the front door, I discovered a thin envelope from Penn GI Genetics – far too thin to be the packet of … Continue reading

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roll over, play dead

Today, not to minimize real weather catastrophes like tsunamis in Indonesia and hurricanes in New Orleans, has been a rain-soaked nightmare in the City of Brotherly Love.  In our house, the day began, as Saturdays often do, with Mike and … Continue reading

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