Driving Me Crazy!

      Something has been driving me crazy ever since I was first diagnosed with cancer and recently it has struck my last nerve! I guess I didn't pay attention earlier because it didn't apply to me. I am so sick of "cancer" being everywhere and it being portrayed so negatively or as a death sentence. I am not referring to cancer information or research because I fully support cancer awareness, however I am beyond annoyed with dying cancer patients being in so many books, movies, and songs these days. Obviously, being in my current situation, I am trying to avoid anything depressing right now, but I am finding this more difficult than I ever would have imagined. For example, a couple weeks ago I wanted to go see the new movie Safe Haven. I expected nothing more than a typical Nicholas Sparks love story, but no, to my surprise they threw some cancer in there! The ex wife of the main character had terminal cancer and the movie goes on to show how she writes notes to her children for different stages in their lives that she knows she is going to miss. I didn't need to see that! Needless to say, if I would've known that was in the movie I never would've saw it. I also loooove reading Karen Kingsbury's books! For Christmas I got the Redemption series. I was almost finished reading the last book of the series when I found out my cancer had returned. In that book the mother, Elizabeth Baxter, finds out her breast cancer has returned and has spread throughout her body and she ends up dying. This was AWFUL timing! As I was finding out my own cancer was back this book character kept coming to mind. I was having terrible thoughts, simply from things I had read in this book. Don't get me wrong, these are amazing books of faith during life's trials and triumphs, but I just didn't need to read something like this. Then, a few weeks ago my sister and I were in a store when a country song I haven't heard in a while came on the radio. I had forgotten most of the lyrics except for the chorus but I made some comment to Emma about forgetting how much I liked the song. She went on to say something about how she didn't think I would like it anymore. Long story short the second verse says, "He said I'm flying out here to pick up my big brother. He's been fighting cancer they've discovered, but he called last night and said I think this is the end." Again, depressing! Several other instances have happened but tonight was the final straw. I was watching Step Up 2 of all things, when out of the blue the main character starts telling how her mom died from cancer. Really?! This was supposed to be a dance movie...a chick flick! Was that really necessary? My point in venting about all this is not to simply avoid cancer or pretend that I don't have it or that it doesn't exist, but to call attention to how cancer is portrayed in the media. The media seems to portray cancer as one thing...as death. I despise that!! That is wrong on so many levels. The media is feeding off of cancer. Milking it for a sappy topic to bring in some cash. Instead they should focus on the positives! Look at how many people are beating cancer these days. This isn't twenty or thirty years ago. Cancer is no longer a death sentence. I love the attitude here at MD Anderson. Everyone is so positive and hopeful. Nothing is impossible and no situation is hopeless. If a cancer patient surrounds themself with negativity, how will they ever see the need to fight? Every time I get mad about this issue I tell my family how one day I'm going to write books for cancer patients about nothing but the most simple, happy things. My latest examples have been IHop pancakes, sparkly flats, and ketchup. Ridiculous! But that's the point. The most simplistic things that make you happy and usually have no value, but have absolutely nothing to do with cancer!! I know first hand that every cancer patient needs a little pick-me-up sometimes and as far from cancer as they can get!