I keep hearing similarities

I keep hearing similarities this week. I keep hearing about other people's lives and finding similarities with my past. It's sometimes hard.

One of my co-workers has a son who is very ill with cancer. He had it, was treated, went into remission, and then it came back. He lives in another state and she took off last week to go visit him. He has discontinued his chemo and is waiting for Hospice to evaluate his pain needs. She said they made plans for his funeral, etc., while she was there, and he is planning a trip here in two weeks to see people and say goodbye.

My brother was diagnosed a few years back with stomach cancer. He was treated, went into remission, and shortly afterward it came back. He discontinued his chemo while making plans to come here to see people and say goodbye. He lived in another state and my mother went up to see him for a week. My brother failed quickly, and by the end of that week, after a ten-hour frantic trip to make it to his bedside, he died an hour before my siblings and I arrived.

When my co-worker was telling me of her plans, I had to hold my tongue so I didn't say something to discourage her. I wanted to say, "Don't wait two weeks! He may not have that much time left!" but I kept my mouth shut. It made me sad to think it could happen to her too.

Today there was an employee recognition ceremony at work for the entire university. It was nice and I put some faces to names that I knew. One of the faculty was honored with an award and I remembered her from when I was taking classes. It would have been about twelve years ago (I think). The announcer read a bit of her biography and it said that she had decided to go to school at some point when she was a stay-at-home mom with four kids. Her husband, a small business owner, was supportive. She took an accounting class on a whim and liked it. She ended up with that as her major and then went on to get her masters and eventually her doctorate.

I was a stay-at-home mom with three kids. My husband, working for a small business (and eventually its owner) was supportive. I took an accounting class after toying with getting a double major in art and English, and liked it. I ended up with that as my major. I do not have my masters but am toying with the idea of getting it since I can do it for free.

I've always liked this instructor because she was the one who came to me and told me I was the recipient of the Outstanding Accounting Student Award for my graduating class. I never could figure out why I was chosen, except that I was persevering. Today I thought perhaps she saw something in me that she recognized from herself. I don't know. I was glad to know more about her.

It's only Tuesday, so there could be more.