And I Return…

After a long period of inactivity I return. Live By the Sun started as a vegetarian turned vegan food blog, and will continue in that spirit, but a new event has come into my life and it is one I feel compelled to blog about. This “event” is a dance with the “c” word: cancer. Follicular thyroid cancer is my diagnosis.

I choose these words with purpose. An event has a start time and end time, and I plan to work purposefully toward a positive resolution, or end time. As for the word dance, this is the definition I like best: “To move rhythmically, usually to music, using prescribed or improvised steps and gestures.” There is a certain rhythm to living day by day under such circumstances. There are periods of pause while waiting for appointments or results, and periods of activity when things move so very quickly. This entire event can’t help but be set to music: the music I teach, play, listen to, and from which I draw inspiration. Some of this dance will be prescribed by specialists whom I choose to trust and follow, while other parts of this dance will be improvised: What feels best today? What seems like the best course of action for me? What alternative treatments might I explore alongside Western medicine?

The reasons to blog about this are many: a wish to provide a place for others with this form of cancer to find a common spirit, a desire to communicate with friends and family whom I do not see as often as I would like living so far from home, a way to fill my recovery time productively, a means for me to process so much new information, and of course to keep sharing recipes that I love.

In particular, since this is a less common kind of cancer, there are fewer blogs about it. I have been searching for personal stories, tips, and inspiration. While I did find some, the list was surprisingly short. So thus begins a new chapter in my blogging, sharing the journey of this dance, and of course.....the food!