I had a good talk with Cousin Julie tonight. I love her.
Jule's been fighting her own health battle for the last six-ish months (ever heard of Wegener's? you can read up on it here, if you haven't).
Julie getting handed this diagnosis has been an interesting thing for me. It was surprising - no, shocking - to be the person who got the phone call that something was wrong last fall. It was surreal to suddenly flip roles, for me to be the one doing online research in an effort to wrap my head around what was happening with my cousin's body. I'm grateful for the opportunity that I've had to pray for her, to check in on her, and to hope with all that is in me that she'll respond to treatment.
It's been a crazy few months for her (I'm sure that's the understatement of the year), but she's responded well to medication and I'm hopeful that she'll just continue to get better and better.
I'm glad she's okay. (So glad!) I'm grateful that she had a dramatic flare-up that made doctors sit up and take notice right away, that she was able to get on a treatment plan quickly, and that she's sounding more and more like herself all the time.
And as nuts as it may sound, I'm grateful for this shared battle - for this "one more thing" we have in common, for another experience that has bonded us. Do we have the same diagnosis? No. Are our treatment plans the same? No. But I know that she knows what it's like to live through the daily battle of a spirit against a body that has a mind of its own. I know that she knows what it's like to have medication dull your senses and your ability to perform daily tasks. I am grateful that we can talk to each other about side effects, that we can buoy each other up, telling the other that it will get better (if only because, at some point, it just can't get any worse). I'm grateful for the shared knowledge there is a lesson hidden (somewhere, deep down there) that can only be learned by wading through a struggle with your health.
Julie has been one of my best friends my whole life. She makes me laugh and she makes me think. She asks me questions that no one else asks, and helps me understand things about myself and the world around me. I don't know who I'd be without her.
