Almost immediately after I was diagnosed I wanted to go. I didn’t really care where. I wasn’t seeking a destination but rather movement, forward movement. This desire was not at all about running away, I knew I could not run away from this disease and as the realist I am I was ready to face it and start fighting. No, my desire was more about getting on with life, fully living like I hadn’t lived before. I began running toward all the things I hadn’t allowed myself to have or do.
Unfortunately this disease puts an immediate halt to our plans, drop everything and start treatment. Fast forward to about nineteen months after my initial diagnosis of stage III and I find myself hearing my oncologist say those dreaded words, “the cancer has progressed.“ Then signing the paperwork for my new treatment where the word “curative” has been replaced with “palliative” gave new meaning to my desire to live life fully.
My mind immediately went to all the things I had planned on doing when I retire. Now faced with the reality that it is unlikely I will live to see retirement I decided to start acting on those retirement plans. Thankfully my husband was completely supportive.
Approximately one month later I flew to Texas to pick up my new to us motorhome. I need to pause here and thank my brother, Scott who found the motorhome, coached me through the purchase, flew to Texas to help me drive it back and teach me how to drive a motorhome! I also need to thank Terry Arnold for picking us up at the Dallas airport and driving us to the RV dealership in College Station. It is so nice to have a new friend in Texas. She truly went out of her way to help me.
Hitting the road and traveling around the USA, going wherever we want to go was our retirement dream and now, with the purchase of Maxine, we’re making it reality. Yes, we’ve named our motorhome Maxine after the Hallmark card character. I’ve always said that when I turn 80 I’m going to be just like Maxine, doing and saying whatever I darn well want to. Well, I may not be 80 but I’ve decided having stage IV IBC is equivalent.
So where are we going? Alaska! That’s right, my husband, Gregory and I are leaving June 1 from Plymouth, MA. We’ve been planning this trip for more than a year and I can’t believe it’s finally here.
This is a time for us to have our retirement journey while I’m still feeling well. It is a time for us to make memories to bring comfort to my husband when I’m no longer here with him. It is a time for us to reflect on our nearly 36 years of marriage, counting the many blessings we’ve had. It is a time for us to enjoy our journey together.
In some way stage IV is a blessing because the only way we can afford this trip is by tapping into our retirement fund. Never in a million years would I do such a thing! I’ve always been pretty frugal but I can’t take it with me when I die!
In other ways it creates an additional challenge to our travels because I will need to fly back to Boston every three weeks for treatment. This means we need to make it to certain destinations where I can catch a flight in time. As you can imagine that alone creates some stress since anything can happen along the way to slow us down or force us to change plans. One must be flexible when traveling by RV, it’s almost a necessary rule so….wish us luck or say some prayers.
We’ll be on the road for three months. If you see us honk or if we’re parked please stop by to say hello. How will you know it’s us? Because we’ll have IBC Network signs on our motorhome! I’m truly hoping to bring awareness and education to those I encounter. If my story inspires people to donate to research via the IBC Network that would be pretty wonderful too. Please take a picture of us if you see us on the road and post it to your social media account. Make sure you tag The IBC Network Foundation!
