A new year for us all. I was greeted by ethereal light as the sun shone through the cold frosty morning mists. A pigeon perching: just another day for a bird.
Stunning beauty to see off 2025 and greet 2026. For those of us on a "cancer journey",saying "happy" new year hasn't always felt quite appropriate, as feeling "happy" is so much more complex than a easy phrase thrown out. Cancer makes you think more deeply and look more closely. "Happy" is more perhaps about gaining a deeper appreciation of just about everything and valuing the simplest of moments and pleasures.
This is what my garden journey throughout my chemo months has helped me to achieve. I have found happiness in simple beauties of nature, as well, of course, from the love and support of family and friends.
Chemo is sharp, painful and unpleasant. I have counted down the months, weeks and days, crossing off each dose of tablets taken. Seasons have come and gone, and will come round again. So as I ease into a much needed chemo break over the festive season, I have braced the cold to capture the beauty of frost, coating that bright green moss on the lawn, and lying delicately on leaves, twigs and branches. Sparkling in the morning sunlight, a joy to counter the lingering chemo side effects that refuse to depart in a hurry.
