My heart is heavy and sad.  My friend Jody has died.  Jody and I met while going through radiation together.  I wrote about her in an earlier blog Hair! and 13 to Go.  After radiation we stayed in touch.   We saw each other last spring.  I saw her again on Oct 13 at SCCA.   Jody had Inflammatory Breast Cancer.  She died on October 30th.  Somehow, I don’t have a picture of her or us.

Jody and I would probably have never met if we didn’t both have breast cancer.  We live about 60 miles apart.  I want to say “well that is one good thing about being diagnosed”  But, there really isn’t any good thing about cancer.  It sucks.  We only try to make good things come from the bad.  And this was one of the good things.

We were able to talk to each other in the way that only those who are going through what you are going through understand.  And… we hugged.  We hugged every time we saw each other in the radiation oncology waiting room.  We hugged again when we passed each other, one of us going in and one of us coming out, near the treatment rooms.   We texted hugs (not the same as a real hug but good in a pinch.)  when we were not near each other.

It is always great to meet a fellow hugger!  We hugged 5 days a week for 7 weeks.  We said so much to each other when we hugged.  We did the “port still in place” hug.  We did the “skin is burned from radiation ” hug.  But we always did the “so glad to see you”  hug.  Every time we hugged it felt ” like a bandage to a hurting wound.”

I am so glad to have met you my friend.  Your children will miss their mom.  Your parents will miss their daughter.  Your husband will miss his wife.  I will miss our conversations.   But most of all  I will so miss those Jody hugs.  Rest in peace my dear friend.  Hugs!

 A hug is the shortest distance between friends.  ~Author Unknown

A hug is two hearts wrapped in arms.  ~Author Unknown