*June 2019* written by Ivy Elkins for Lungcancer.net
I just saw my 18-year-old son graduate from high school. Although this seemed impossible when I was first diagnosed in 2013, I was here to watch him walk across the stage to receive his high school diploma. In three months, I will be there to help him move into college across the country, set up his dorm room and leave him to begin a quasi-independent life. As opposed to a number of my friends, who feel sad that their child will be away from home, I am thrilled! I never thought I would be around to raise him to this point in his life and I’m so excited to see him ready for his next steps.
I still want to experience more
I remember thinking to myself when I was first diagnosed that if I would be fortunate enough to see my boys launched into college, I would be satisfied with a life lived well. At the time, that seemed almost like an unattainable goal. Although I still have two years more to go before my younger son graduates from high school, this goal no longer seems so impossible. Despite being close to reaching my long-term goal, however, I am nowhere near ready to be done with living. I still want more — much, much more! Read more here.
