Her story.

There is a woman who went to the hospital and had an ultrasound performed. Then her doctor called and told her it seemed that her left ovary had a cyst in it. But this cyst looked 'worrisome' and 'concerning' and the doctor needed to do surgery right away. And she would even ask an experienced oncologist to be part of the procedure because she wasn't sure exactly how bad it was. And the woman gave her permission for the doctor to do surgery. Permission to remove as many reproductive organs as necessary to ensure her health and her life.

There is a woman who felt like her life was beyond paralyzed for two weeks. As she waited for surgery she cried at various times of the day and night. She hoped. She tried to carry on as normal with her children and husband. And she shouted. And she screamed. And she prayed more than she ever had. Sometimes on her knees. Sometimes lying on her bed. Sometimes with her friends. Often with her husband. But many, many times on her own when the weight of pondering the future got too much. And when it felt like she was heading down a really dark pathway of hopeless thoughts, she'd try to pray again.

There is a woman who called her parents who live many, many miles away and told them the news. It only took a few sentences of stumbling explanation before the tears started to flow and it all tumbled out. And between her sobs she heard the intake of breath and instant sadness at the other end of the phone. And then, later on amongst more tears, her parents prayed for her and told her that they loved her. Which she has known all her life. And they gathered more people where they live to pray that everything would be okay.

There's a woman who went to church and cried through the whole worship service. And the people around her let her cry. They put their arms around her and let her sob. And they supported her, loved her, prayed for her, and cared for her in the fortnight before surgery.

There's a woman who bought cupcakes and balloons for her daughter's 9th birthday knowing that the day after they celebrated, she would be having surgery and their lives might be looking very different as a family.

There's a woman who sat on a bed in a hospital, watching the clock grind forward slowly and holding her husband's hand as they prayed together. With an IV in her right arm and Kleenex in her left hand she sobbed at the inevitability of the impending surgery and the weight of not knowing what was happening inside her. What was certain that their friends and family were praying for her right then. Outside the curtain they heard the surgical team gathering and waited for the surgeon to arrive.

There is a woman who sat on a bed in a hospital whilst her surgeon held her hands gently and talked softly about how she was concerned, and what was going to happen might be very life changing. The words 'tumor', 'cancer' and 'reality' swam around somewhere in the conversation, and then it was time for the woman to say goodbye to her husband and be wheeled around the corner to have caring medical professionals take care of her. Her surgery should last three hours because of the extent of what may need to be removed.

There is a surgeon who was astonished and relieved to find that there was no cyst in the ovary. That there was nothing to remove and no tumor, cancer, or endometrioma anywhere to be found. There are nurses who smiled at me as I awoke after only 45 minutes under anesthesia to be told that they found nothing at all to worry about. Rousing from the anesthesia, smiling groggily at the joy of realizing that the outcome was more than I could ever have hoped for, I realized that all those prayers had been answered. I hugged my smiling surgeon, cried joyful tears and wept with my husband. Four hours after being wheeled into surgery I was home again.

This is my story.

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? 
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord watches over you— the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

Psalm 121

I can never be more thankful to God than I am right now. Thank you for reading.

Jo