Cinco de Mayo

Five years ago today my dad was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. It was May 5, 2005 (5.5.5.) and I was living in England at the time for a study abroad program. I had just finished showing my new British friends how to enjoy fajitas and guacamole when I went back to my house and got The Call.

Here he is after a few chemo treatments, just before he lost his eyelashes and eyebrows

Today, I’m extremely ecstatic to report that—five years later—he’s still in remission, but the trials he went through still seems so fresh in my mind. I’ve been part of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training for several years and have ran/walked two half marathons and raised more than $6,000 to fight this terrible disease. Clearly, this is something very close to my heart and I hope to work with TNT sometime again in the future.

When someone close to you goes through something terrible, you want to be optimistic about the future, but honestly, there are moments when horrible thoughts creep their way into your mind. At the time, I remember thinking that all I wanted was for my dad to be able to walk me down the aisle at my wedding, and he did! And I am extremely thankful for that.

So while I love celebrating Cinco de Mayo by munching on chips and salsa and washing it all down with a cold margarita, the fifth of May will forever be engraved in my mind as the day my dad was diagnosed with cancer. I know I should probably remember the date we found out he was in remission, but for me, May 5, 2005, was a day that my life changed.