Sad News ....my friend Linda

This is my friend Linda.  She has been my friend for a while.  She has children my age.  And I love her.  She comes lobstering with us and gets shrimp.  She is the smartest, kindest, knowledgable, God fearing person.  She sent us a disheartening email...it says in part:

I have stage 4 lung cancer, also in the adrenal glands and with a broken rib and some lesions on the spine and hips.  It is terminal, inoperable, and I have about 4 months to live.

This was on Oct 15 about.  My heart stopped.  I couldn't imagine Linda, the picture perfect individual (other than wearing slacks to camp....however, we got her to wear jeans the next time around) who was planning on going on a mission with my friend Lynne in a few year, who takes care of her entire family...there are about 12 children and a herd of grandchildren...and serves in the church wherever she is asked or might even be needed....is going to die.  Yes.  that is true.

I am sooo sad!  I will miss her.  She just keeps things in perspective and is soo funny when we lobster.  Lobstering won't be the same.  I hate to even think about what she is going to go through in the next 4 months.  I also wonder like what she is doing right now, knowing that in 4 months she will be dead.  Is she praying, sleeping, reading scripures, repenting.?  She probably doesn't need to repent...but what does a person do when confronted with this situation?  Because whatever is appropriate, she would be doing that for sure.

I read the email at about midnight.  This is how I was coping with her news about 2:00 in the am.  I'm surprised I wasn't eating an entire bag of peanut butter M & Ms...but i didn't have any.  And if I did, they would have already been eaten by then......

One good thing about it, is that she has two children that have passed on.  So she can be with them.  She could also see Melanie (who she doesn't even know) and she can visit our other lobster bud who died, Gerilynn.  No one will want to lobster with us again since two of our lobster buds are not doing well. One dead, and the other nearly dead.  So depressing.  Soo unfair!

On another note....some of my friends decided years ago that we would be chemo buddies.  That means if you need someone to drive you to chemotherapy (since you can't drive yourself home...at least we thought so) we would do it for each other.  Chemo buddies.  Well, one of our chemo buddies died already...gerilyn.  She was the youngest.  fyi.  So here is the email exchange we had with Linda about chemo buds...

This to Linda

We promised to be chemo buddies so if you need a chemo driver I am experienced -- ready with pillows, blanket, barf bag and all.

Actually I am serious. If you do need someone with you I will be there for you.
XOXOXO

Lynne

Then I said

THANKS so much for the update!  serious.  I'm a good chemo bud too.  I can sit in the back with you and tell Lynne how to drive.  We could even skip the trailer park trip on the way home if you are not feeling up to the extra few minutes.  Hopefully you will be feeling up to a frosty....

We could always shrimp at 10:00 am.   

Super triple LOVE to you!  

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo (ha more than Lynne had)

Maureen

Then Janet said:

And by the way, I determined over the weekend that unlike both of you, I would be a TERRIBLE chemo driver. Why? Picking Lindar up in the work truck: "Oh, SORRY, Linda! Sorry you got fertilizer all over the bottom of you from what spilled on the passenger side seat! Hope you don't have some chemical reaction during chemo...Oh...and sorry for the little flag metal prong that poked you from lawn flags shoved on the truck floor and out of the way. Hope you can find a comfortable spot on the way home in between the empty Coke bottles and sprinkler parts that are taking up the other half of the floor. Don't worry! I'll get you back home soon. You feel like you are going to throw up? NO PROBLEM! There are two garbage bags down on the floor that you can just grab... HANDY, huh!"

Yes... I will leave the driving up to y'all :-) LOVE YOU GUYS! Please let me know what I can do or how I can help out with things on Friday. 
Hmmm...there's always the idea of pink flamingoes somehow too... in a way that isn't too messy or bothersome to clean up. 


Oh we think we are soo funny...


UPDATE:  Linda did pass on in July of 2017.  She was in the hospital for about a week and did make it to most of her functions.  I think the only reason she was still here on earth this long was because she hung with us.  That was the most evil thing she ever did I am sure...well besides the three cigarettes she smoked when she was 20.