My mother, Janie, has been through so much in the past eight years, I think she’s forgotten what it’s like to be comfortable–let alone pampered.
In 2002, Janie was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a double mastectomy/hysterectomy, and several rounds of estrogen-destroying hormone treatments. She lost her sense of femininity—hormones, womb, and breasts—in one awful year. The years following that were full of fear about whether or not the cancer was coming back, as well as the huge adjustments in her daily life that she made as she struggled to deal with her new scars, her new appearance, and her new anxieties. My father tried to urge her to rest during this period, but she still insisted on working to my brother and I—who were just entering college (him) and finishing up high school (me)—financially as we went through our own life changes and transitions. She tried to be there for us emotionally, too, even though she was undergoing so much.
And then, just when her health seemed to be on an upswing in 2006, my father, to whom my mother had been happily married for over 25 years, was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. For three years, my mother acted as his health advocate amidst complicated procedures, a mess of medical expenses, and even frustrating miscommunication between his doctors. She then carried the family through the sudden changes we had to make financially as his health declined—moving us into a smaller home pretty much single-handedly, since my father was so weak—and then took care of my dad through at-home hospice for several months. When he died in January of ’09, she didn’t allow the family to fall apart. She managed the family estate and returned to work, making sacrifices to help support me, her youngest, as I left college and began to embark on my own career path.
She lives as a widow now at 54. Her job these days involves helping women with breast cancer to “look normal—or at least as good as they can,” as she puts it, by fitting them with specialty wigs and prostheses. Every day, she grieves with women over their scars as they try to hide the damage. Every day, I think she opens up her own old wounds, but she knows that, as a survivor herself, there is no one who can understand the women who come to her for help any better. In spite of the pain, she puts her heart on the line every day to help others who are going through cancer. I can’t believe she does it—and I can’t imagine how she manages it, especially since she’s still grieving for my father and all the things she lost in her 25-year romance with him. He was her best friend.
She hasn’t had much time to take care of herself in the year following his death, and I think she’s forgotten what it’s like to be taken care of. Even though I’ve been living with her for the last ten months, she hasn’t ever relinquished her caretaker role to me, and she still takes on the heaviest burdens for herself. Grief has aged her prematurely—and I know that she would feel much more refreshed and confident and able to move on if she had the chance for some rejuvenating pampering she could never afford on her new budget.
Thanks for considering my mom, Janie, for this contest. Even if she doesn’t get your vote, I hope you’ll think of her in your prayers. Submitted by: Abbie
Tags: Indianapolis, Mother's Day, Ology Spa, spa
Janie definitely has my vote!
She’s got my vote
GO JANIE!!!!
Get it Janie! You deserve this!
Janie, you deserve this!
Abbie, I hope your mom gets this – It sounds like she really deserves it.
Janie has my vote!
Janie gets my vote. Ann Campbell, Hanover, class of ’70
Janie, you have my vote
Go Janie!
Janie has my vote!
Heidi has my vote
What an inspiring story! Thanks for sharing it!
This sounds like it’d be perfect for such a hard-working woman! Good luck!
She has my vote.
Janie has my vote…What a great human being!
janie has my vote!!
Janie is a very special person and I agree with Abbie that she never thinks about pampering herself……she is such a giver and I would love for her to actually receive something so special for Mother’s Day……no one deserves it more than Janie.
Janie has my vote!
Janies got my vote….God Bless!
I admire Janie for her strength, compassion and kindness. I vote for Janie and hope you win!
I would like to vote for Janie. She has endured a lot emotionally yet has never lost focus of her role as loving mother and mother-in-law to Abbie, Caleb, and Hillary. Behind every great family is a great woman. It is for this reason that I hole heartedly vote for Janie.
Janie has my vote!
Janie has my vote!
Janie’s got my vote! There’s no one who deserves this more than she does, with all she has been through!
I just found out about this and am so excited Janie’s been nominated. Good luck!
Definitely has my vote! I hope you win!
Sounds like you deserve it!
Janie gets my vote! Such an inspiring story! I hope this helps her feel better and that it is the start of a positive recovery.
What an amazing woman! A true inspiration! Definitely deserving of this spa treatment. She has my vote, no question about it.
I can’t think there could be a person more worthy of such a great reward, although Janie would not echo that sentiment. ‘ Just another reason she deserves it. Add one more to Janie’s vote total, please.
Janie’s got my vote! Good luck! She’s the perfect person for this gift. God Bless!
Janie has my vote!
Janie gets my votie! What a great story on its way to a happy outcome!
This other Janie TOTALLY deserves the spa treatments. She is such a wonderful, inspiring person for us all! My vote is obvious.
Janie deserves three votes from me, and it’s not just because I’m marrying somebody named Janie…
Janie has my vote. She put up with Caleb for >20 years. For that alone she deserves to spend the rest of her life being pampered.
Another vote for Janie!
My vote here!
Janie should win!
加油.
life can be hard, sometime you cannot choose. feel and learn to enjoy every bit of it. Hope you win.
Janie has my vote!
Janie gets my vote!
Janie gets my vote!
What a deserving person. There is even more to the story shared by Abbie and Janie serves as an inspiration to so very many and has touched many lives. She deserves only the best.
janie’s got my vote!
Janie has my vote, what a lady!
Got my vote!
I agree, she deserves it. You have my vote.
My vote goes to Janie! What a heart-warming story and one amazing woman. It’s time you received some pampering!
Janie gets my vote!