Count Your Blessings

Today, while cleaning out a closet I can across a homemade wallet, one of dozens in this house I am sure.  Wondering what could be in it, I opened it and found this newspaper article.  This was in the Thanksgiving State paper in 1991.  I still remember them coming here to take our picture and interview mama.  I had to share.  It explains a lot about who I am and why.  I am so blessed to have been raised not only by this great woman but also an equally wonderful father.  They are forever my inspirations and continue to be the voices in my head from heaven.

Count Your Blessings

She Lives For Her Daughter

The State; Thursday, November 28, 1991

Less than five months after the birth of her daughter, Jackie Graham tumbled into a catastrophic fate:  a diagnosis of cancer.

It took away her breasts; it snuck into her bones of her back and ribs, it invaded the muscles of her arms and legs.

And yet, Graham, 55, is thankful.

Thankful that despite the disease’s steadfast march through her body, her fight has brought her 15 more years of life.

“It was really frightening in the beginning,” Graham of Johnsonville said.  “But then I started having one prayer.  To live for her.  To live long enough to see my daughter be able to take care of herself.”

The journey, however, has been difficult, often made only through the strength of her body, her faith and her family.

While she struggled through the cancer, her husband, five years ago suffered a heart attack.

It was a devastating blow to a woman who depended on her husband, a football coach, for daily pep talks.

“There were so many nights that I would reach over as he slept to makes sure he was still alive,” she said.  “We know about living on the edge.”

And yet, the couple and their daughter, Regina, have tried to keep the home life tranquil.

“We want to have a happy life,” Graham said.

And a lot of happiness for Graham wells from watching her daughter grow.

Regina, a Johnsonville High School sophomore, is a cheerleader and a Girl Scout and is in several clubs.

“I live for her,” Graham said.  “She, and my faith in God, is what keeps me going.  I’m sure that’s why I have been spared.”

Unfortunately, Graham said it is difficult to ignore the specter of cancer.  This Thanksgiving, she will join her husband’s family for a reunion.

But her sister-in-law, “who I was really, really close to,” will not be there.  She died in April only six months after she was diagnosed with cancer.

Graham, her voice cracking, said the death has made her realize how precious time is – so often wasted in the chaos of daily living.

“I’m just so thankful I’m here with my family and I can enjoy them,” she said.  “I’m thankful for another ordinary day.  For me, that’s a day without death, accidents of other bad news.”