A prayerful and honest post...

At the current moment I am upset, hurt, maybe even a little heartbroken. Usually this would NOT be the time that I would write a post for fear that I might write something I would later regret. However, I feel led so here goes...

A few moments ago, I got word that someone was bad-mouthing our Wilms Warrior Team t-shirts for this year's Relay For Life (as seen here). It seems that the theme "Cancer...Happy Trails To You" is unclear. I want to clarify its meaning. I have not idea who started these statements but I feel in my heart that it was someone who is hurting. Someone struggling to deal with the crazy roller-coaster emotions that cancer evokes; emotions I know all to well. I feel that the words CANCER and HAPPY in the same sentence seem like an oxymoron to this person and may have even offended them. They seemed to think that there is nothing happy about cancer and I can see their point. I would never hope to offend someone who is dealing with cancer so I want to be clear.

Anytime I have ever heard the song "Happy Trails" used it is to tell someone/something goodbye. In my design of the shirt I hoped to relay this message TO cancer. Goodbye, so long, get lost...may we NEVER meet again.

I did want the shirt to be uplifting. Because that is something that people dealing with cancer need. Trust me...I know.

Maybe this person does not really know me. Maybe they see my beautiful, intelligent, glasses wearing, no front tooth having, kindergarten daughter and think..."sure they are happy, cancer is all over for them." Maybe they don't know that there is a hole in my heart and in the heart of my family where this disease took my father 3 months after his 40th birthday. Maybe they don't know what it is like to hear "she has a mass on her kidney" or "there is a high chance she might die in surgery"....maybe they just don't know.

Maybe they can't see anything HAPPY about this...

or this...

but I can!

If this person is hurting I want them to know that I am praying for them, whoever they are. That they will allow God to come into their lives so that they can once again experience the happiness in the world around them. Cancer and what it does to those we love is NOT HAPPY. However, I am a happy person because God has blessed me...the chief of all sinners.

Supporting Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society is something that is very special for my family. One of the small reasons we participate is so that we can show Carys what it means to be involved and give back. We try to make her a big part of our team. Our t-shirt are always inspired by her and in honor of her fight. This year she wanted a western theme so that she could wear her cowboy boots. We have happy looking children on our shirts because she wanted them there. The shirt was not ment to imply that cancer or its journey are happy.

I hope that this person will join us at the event. I must warn them that if they do not want to see people having FUN or being HAPPY while fighting cancer they might not want to come. Relay is designed to inspire Hope and Joy for people dealing with cancer and the possibility of ending cancer forever!  That is the message of our shirt and I pray that message comes shinning through.