Warning: Baldie Below

Perspective:
I would have to say that one of the things cancer has given me is perspective.  I was sitting in a group of new moms yesterday listening to the conversation.  One mom asked when her hair was going to stop falling out and the others joined right in going on and on about how annoying it was and how you could *gasp* see right through her hair these days.  I just listened for a long time before simply making one comment.  "At least you have hair. . . " I did not say it to be mean or to make anyone feel bad, I simply was telling the truth.  I have come to grips with where I am and right now in this season of my life, I don't have hair.  All I wanted to do was remind these moms that it is all about perspective.  There are bigger things in life than your hair. . . there are people in worse situations. . . just take a minute and be thankful for where you are.  I know that things are not peachy keen right now in my life but you know what, I am BEYOND BLESSED!  Yes I have cancer but I have no complaints.  My needs are met and my God is big.  He provides over and over and over again and I just have to continue to trust him. 

My perspective has recently changed on something else.  Being bald.  I have had two different survivors tell me that I need to take pictures of myself bald because it is not something I will be doing again and I need to document where I am.  I have pretty much refused pictures of my bald head from the beginning.  Honestly, I was embarrassed.  I would not go anywhere without my wig because I did not want those funny looks from people.  I felt like I had somehow, in some way done something wrong and I was embarrassed that I had cancer.  Silly, yes. Real, absolutely!  I don't know where it came from or how it happened but I somehow realized how silly it was to be embarrassed.  Maybe it was the realization that cancer is my platform right now for sharing Jesus with others, maybe it was the fact that wigs are just downright uncomfortable, whatever it was changed my perspective.  I can now go anywhere in just a hat and often walk around home as a baldie.  I am about to do something I have never done and share a picture with the whole world.  It is a little intimidating, I don't want to make anyone sad or upset (another reason it took me so long to wear a hat, I wanted to protect others).  You can choose whether or not to look at it and I will never know. But as I continue to learn about perspective, I am learning to embrace new ideas. . . like the fact that I have a really nice shaped head :-) with some teeny, tiny stubble. . . and a beautiful, amazing sister sitting next to me rubbing my head for luck each step of this journey.