Vickie, my hero

My sister, Vickie, has been living with ovarian cancer about 7 years. Mostly she’s had good quality of life, largely due to her faith, positive attitude, and personal strength. I’ve been fortunate to be part of her journey through the ups and downs of cancer treatment – multiple surgeries, rounds of radiation, chemotherapy, immune-therapy. Deciding to serve in the Peace Corps was difficult, knowing I would not be around to support her or her family as this journey continues. She encouraged me to serve, saying it would make her feel guilty and sad if I did not follow my dream due to her circumstances. She always has been, and continues to be, a pure example of selfless love.

She is now on home hospice since her disease is terminal and there are no more treatment options for her. She is very weak, often confused or groggy from the medication that helps keep her comfortable, but her personality still shines through.

Recently, when Vickie was still able to go out, my niece, Andrea, took her to get her nails done. Vickie picked out the color, gave it to the technician and promptly fell asleep during the mani-pedi. The technician noticed it was glitter blue and asked for confirmation from Andrea since it seemed an odd choice. Andrea agreed since her mother had never been that adventurous and picked out a non-glitter blue. As they were walking out, Vickie looked at her nails and said, “Where’s the glitter? This is not what I picked.” Later, when a friend commented on her pretty nails and asked about the color, she sarcastically said, “I don’t know, ask her (pointing to Andrea)”.

In recent days, she can’t walk unassisted, or so we thought. Who knows how or why but Andrea’s husband found Vickie on all fours, a relaxing position for her, on their dog’s bed in the living room when he was leaving for work. Andrea took her back to bed and she had no memory of it. My brother commented later in the day, “Vickie, do you remember taking a little trip last night?” Without missing a beat, Vickie replied, “No, but I hope it was a fun vacation.”

All for now with all my love