What Goes Around Comes Around

Being a cancer patient can be a very interesting journey. I have been extremely lucky to have made many good friends along the way. I know I have shared with you some of my friends stories and news. Today I will do so again.

I met my friend Erica at Hippocrates. Something just clicked between us right away. We had the same attitude about our lives and our cancer. We chose to laugh and be happy in the moment. I think we spent hours just comparing our funny cancer stories with one another. We talked about writing a book together about how cancer doesn't have to be so doom and gloom and how sometimes you can find a silver lining even in the worst of times. Whenever we would fall off the "raw" bandwagon we would compare who ate the worst thing. You ate lamb chops??? Well I ate curly fries!!! We would laugh and realize that no one is perfect and in each other we had a real support system. Someone that understood. We have taken each others news harder then we have taken our own. We each put on our brave faces when it is happening to us but when it is happening to our friends we feel helpless. Probably very similar to how all of you feel watching me go through this experience. It becomes too real.

I recently received a letter in the mail from Erica's family. She is fighting so hard and she is seeing lots of changes. Some good ones. Some not so good ones. I can hear her doctors now telling her that chemo is the only way. I know because that is what they say to me. I also know that her decision to restart chemo was extremely hard. I know in her heart that it is not what she wants but she will do whatever it takes to win. Who wouldn't? Unfortunately chemo isn't the only thing that Erica needs to worry about. The past two years have been extremely tough on her family financially. They are doing everything to keep it together. The letter I received was a call to help lift the financial burden that cancer has created. I immediately got my check book out to help. Before I started to write, I realized that I could do more. When my financial burden was heavy I didn't even have to send a letter. My friends and family threw benefits to make my life easier and I didn't even have to ask. I really feel like it is my turn to help someone else.

With that being said I have decided to throw a benefit for Erica on Tuesday September 23rd. I have only a couple of weeks to pull this together and I hope that it is a great success for Erica's sake. We have created a separate site for this event where you can buy tickets or donate to the cause (see below for the address). We will be doing a silent auction to raise funds as well. If any of you have something that you would like to contribute to the auction, it would be greatly appreciated. You can contact me directly on my personal e-mail. I will thank-you in advance for all of the love and support. And to Erica who is reading this, stay strong my friend. We will beat this together, laughing the whole way of course!!

Kristine

http://benefitforerica.blogspot.com/