Choices

I was shopping at Fred Meyer when a lady looking at bathing suits struck up a conversation with me about the current coupon sale that would only last until 1:00 that day. I’m a talker and so was she so you can only imagine, our conversation lasted to the point that we almost missed out on the time limit. During the course of the conversation we both realized we were Christians and had something in common. It was the day before Easter and my cart was filled with eggs, chocolate bunnies and lots of pastels. By the end of our visit I learned she was a Jehovah Witness. Now I know just a little about this particular belief but the thing that stands out in my mind the most is when I was a child the Jehovah Witness kids couldn’t celebrate any of the holidays including Christmas and Easter or even their Birthday. I could never understand why they wouldn’t recognize the Christian holidays?
Today I have a better understanding of why some religions have made the choices they have in their teaching. If you are reading this please remember that I respect your belief and know you feel the same about mine. I’m so thankful to be blessed to have the choices to choose the way I worship and believe.
So this is what I have learned:

Easter
The word Easter can be traced back to ancient England.
Today Easter is a purely Christian term, however it has a very dark past indeed. Now I am sharing this with you not to ruin your Easter Celebration, but to share the truth with you. Also let us keep in mind that most Christian Holidays came from ancient pagan Holidays as well. The word "Easter" does not appear even one time in the Original Transcripts. After all there are no Hebrew or Greek words for it. In the Original Manuscripts it uses the Hebrew word [ pesach ] which means Passover, the same applies to the New Testament in the Greek Transcripts [ paschal ] as well. In fact the first time that Easter ever appeared in our Bible was with the very first King James Bible in the 1600's, and it was used only one time in that Bible, that was in ( Acts 12:4 ) where it was substituted for the word Passover, by whom we do not know. So where did the word "Easter" come from anyway? Surprise, surprise, a Pagan Holiday which was in honor of a their goddess of the dawn, of spring, and of reproduction. Now an ancient Babylonian legend had it that a giant egg fell from heaven, was rolled ashore by the little fishes, and hatched by doves into Ishtar, or Aahtoreth. This legend over time became known even in Europe, and became firmly entrenched in ancient Britain and was celebrated during the Vernal Equinox. The name Ashtoreth was transliterated into the Gaelic tongue as "Eastre." This was a form of Baal worship. ( One might note that whenever Baal worship was practiced, it included animal and human sacrifices involving children! During this festival pagan priests called Druids preformed religious rites involving dancing around phallic pillars, temple prostitution, and sacrifices in honor of Eastre. Also eggs have always been associated with her, and wherever Baal worship has appeared. Thus Easter eggs are part of the ancient celebration of the goddess as well. The Easter Bunny is a more recent twist on an ancient theme, inspired by the same spirit, rabbits have long been associated with reproduction and with Ashtoreth, or Eastre. Now since the pagans were already celebrating their holiday at about the same time as Passover, the Church once again decided to sanctify their holy day as a method of converting pagans to Christianity. So why not chance the name just a little, clean it up and get rid of their sacrifices, and make it a Christian Holy Day. It was then that Eastre's day became known as Easter. Also, remember our old friend Constantine the Roman emperor? The man who decided to change the Sabbath from the seventh day to the first day of the week, and then muscled the Church into accepting that. The man who dared to change God's Word, well he struck again. You see Constantine convened the council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. a council that he hand picked I might add. This council unanimously ruled that the Easter festival should be celebrated throughout the Christian World on the first Sunday after the full moon following the vernal equinox; and if the full moon should occur on a Sunday and thereby coincide with the Passover festival, Easter should by moved to the following Sunday. Therefore Easter and Passover would become separated, and have been ever since. Of course, in the modern World today the term Easter has become a purely Christian word. No one offers their children before phallic poles, or worships the statue of a woman with many breasts on Easter day. But Christ is equally pushed out, and I can't help but believe that our old enemy 'satan' is behind the whole affair. He simply kept introducing distractions such as eggs, bunnies, Easter baskets until the resurrection of Jesus became an afterthought, and finally not thought of at all, except by a very few. Thus the true significance, of Christ's triumphal victory over death itself, is lost in the shuffle I am sorry to say.

This was all new to me and helped me to understand all the different types of worship or choices not to celebrate the holiday.

I know that he died for me and Easter is a new day, a reminder that he has risen and I am forgiven.

Thank you Pastor Allen for this lesson.

Healthy Me Smoothie

April 14, 2011 So here I am almost two weeks without any type of treatment and I still have unbelievable fatigue. It’s really frustrating, it’s not the kind of fatigue that just makes you tired, it’s that kind you just can’t break through. They say that getting exercise will make it better but then I have to talk myself into some type of physical activity. I ride my exercise bike and it really does help but I would much rather swim and swimming has to wait until my skin is completely healed from the radiation burns.

I think I mentioned that I had made an appointment with a doctor that practices western and eastern medicine. It was nice to talk with a doctor that didn’t just want to give me more medicine but the amount of veggies she wanted me to eat in a day was crazy, so instead of feeling like a rabbit I purchased a juicer and have no problem getting in all the veggies I need in a day. It’s really filling and helps with the low energy; I’ve even lost a few pounds without even trying.

If you would like to try juicing and don’t have a juicer, I got mine at Fred Meyer for $79 and it’s a Juice Man, so it’s a good one. You won’t believe the veggies combinations and the tricks you can use to disguise the taste of some of the not so yummy but good for you veggies.

I buy organic veggies and cost is not that much different and really worth not having to worry about the chemicals. Some fruits and vegetables with thick skins like bananas don’t need to be the organic ones.

I will share some of my recipes with you and if you have ideas you want to share I would like that too.

Mary’s Healthy Me Smoothie Make sure to wash all you fruit and veggies really good (of course)

Kale-one bunch (1 lb.)

Broccoli-one stock w/florets

Beet root-one w/green tops included

Carrot-one

After juicing the veggies above put the juice in a blender with equal amounts of pineapple juice, three strawberries and one banana. Enjoy!

O' Happy Day!

April 5, 2011

It’s hard to believe that today makes seven months from the day I found that ugly lump in my breast. September 5th was that day that would change my life forever. It’s been a long seven months and although it has been painful and scary I feel like it has changed me and in a good way.

I thought I knew a lot about breast cancer but come to find out I knew very little. Did you know that one in every eight women will get breast cancer? Pretty scary stuff! I had the most common type of breast cancer; about 75% of women diagnosed have this type. I was very blessed to not have any cancer in my lymph nodes and the lumpectomy left me with very little scaring. My tumor was driven by hormones so I will take a pill for the next five years that will block the hormone estrogen from my breast and this will give me more assurance that my cancer will not return.

Now it’s time to get back to living my life and I can hardly wait to get my energy back and be able to do the things that I miss. I thank my family and friends for being there and I thank God for giving me my precious wonderful life.

Whispers

March 27, 2011

I’m so ready to be normal again! Whatever normal is I could sure use something close. Here I sit with one boob that looks like it has seen way to much sun with the rest of me looking lily white. Oh well they say in time it will be back to its normal color and my body parts will all match again.

Last week I decided I would venture out in public without a head cover, no hat and no wig. I still have very little hair, but it’s there and I’m kind of excited about it. While I was at my radiation appointment it didn’t seem to faze any of them so on my way home I stopped at sports authority to see about buying an abs lounger. I was no sooner out of my car when I could feel the eyes of the people around me staring and wondering. I started wondering myself what could they be thinking, they have to know that it’s from cancer treatment but then again maybe they don’t know? I tried to remember how I looked at people who were different before my diagnoses, and I guess it’s hard because unless you have been there you don’t know. The young guy they sent to help me in the exercise equipment department had a look on his face of fear. I could only imagine what he was thinking? He let me know they didn’t have what I was looking for and maybe I should go to Wal-Mart. Not a very pushy sales guy? I remembered how I used to think that people lost their hair because of the cancer and didn’t know it was because of the treatment they have to go through. Maybe he thought I had something contagious?

I’m not sure what I was thinking when I went out today without covering my head. I truly don’t like to be noticed and today I was not only noticed but was the topic of many whispers. I guess it’s ok because now I know what it’s like to be different and I can look at the rest of the world in a different way now. Not one of us knows what tomorrow will bring or what hurdles we will have to go over. Our life’s can change in the blink of an eye and we can be the one that is different. Although my hair will grow back and I will blend into the crowd again, I will always remember to be different is a gift from God that only makes us stronger and more compassionate to others.

Lobster

March 22, 2011
With another week underway I have two more treatments behind me with just ten more to go! I’m headed down the home stretch and can’t wait to cross the finish line.

I see a Radiologist every Monday and really thought that this week she would choose to postpone my treatment for a few days to let my skin rest but she said we would just go along with it.

If I was to describe what my skin looks like I would have to say it looks like an over cooked lobster and then some.

On Thursday this week I go back to see the Oncologist, even though I like the man as a person I hate to go to his office, it brings back all those chemotherapy memories and that’s the creepiest thing ever. I guess he will follow me for the next five years to make sure I stay cancer free.

T.G.I.F.

March 18, 2011

You have no idea how happy I am that today is Friday! The end to another week of treatment, 18 down 12 more to go and we won’t even talk about what my skin looks like now. The good news is the fatigue is getting better, as hard as it is to make myself get up and ride that exercise bike I know it’s one of the things that give me more energy.

I also started juicing, it sounded so gross to mix all those veggies together but with a little fruit added you never taste the mixture of good for you veggies. I’m still struggling with the extra weight I put on during chemo, I guess the steroids contribute to that but I just keep trying. The doctor said I’m too hard on myself and to give it more time but it’s hard when you can’t fit in your clothes.

So hope you join me is hoping for a weekend that lasts, for whatever reason.

Fight Like a Girl

Today I finished radiation treatment number fourteen, that makes sixteen more to go. I now have burns and blisters that cover my breast and chest area but buy far this is much easier then the chemo treatments. The chemotherapy made me sick and I lost sight of how important the treatments were.

The radiation might be hard but is much needed to insure that the cancer dosen't have a chance to return. It’s been six months of surgery and treatment and it feels like an eternity but I am thankful.

Radiation causes some fatigue but this to will be over soon and is just a short part of the journey that will help me to one day call myself a cancer survivor.