I Should Not Judge But..........

**This post was taken a little too seriously by someone so I thought I would post a warning: Obviously, this is just my opinion of a woman I observed for ten minutes. No, I did not actually want to slap her. She just annoyed me because of her public negativity. There are certain things that should take place behind closed doors---definitely not in front of fellow cancer patients who are hanging on to any hope they can find. Now please---read on. And don't always take me so seriously....goodness! I tend to be a bit sarcastic about my experience...it makes it less scary! ;-)

While waiting for my appointment on Friday, I was seated across from a woman and her parents. I am always curious about other people in the waiting room. How advanced is their cancer? How are they handling the anxiety and depression that comes with the territory? Are they in remission?

This woman did not make me curious. She was having an open (and rude) conversation with her parents. She was a pretty lady, maybe in her mid 30's, demanding her father promise her that everything is going to be OK. Now...at first I thought, "Oh man. This breaks my heart." Then I thought about it some more. How cruel of her to ask someone to promise that everything is going to be OK. Her poor father looked stressed out enough. I mean, he is there with his daughter--who appeared to be quite the Daddy's Girl--in a top cancer center. I guarantee you he wishes nothing more than to be able to promise her that she will be "OK." I understand we sometimes need to hear "you are going to be fine." Maybe it was the way she behaved that bothered me more than her selfish request. If she had been nicer about it, my heart probably would have broken for her. Instead, her nasty attitude made me raise my eyebrows.

Then she looks at her Mother & starts discussing how things are getting worse, not better, that there is no sense in buying summer clothes because basically she does not know if she will be here or not. Talk about a debbie freaking downer. Yes, I do not know her situation. They may have given her 3 months to live---but based on the attitude of her parents, I have a feeling this woman just has a nasty attitude. Don't get me wrong, having cancer freaking sucks no matter how advanced it is. But, why waste the time you are given being downright rude to those who love you? She was ready to bury her own self. When her mother patiently reminded her how far a positive attitude can take her, she made a smart remark.

Quite frankly, she pissed me off. I wanted to slap some sense into her. She may have a terminal disease that will only allow her a few more months to live. But, she was still able to get from point A to point B. She was able to make herself pretty for her doctors appointment. She was stable enough to belittle her parents in a waiting room full of curious people.(This is obviously what bothered me most about this woman.) She made me angry, but at the same time I feel so sorry for her. She must be absolutely miserable being that miserable!  I wanted to show her my friends who feel so horrible they can't take their kids to school, but can still laugh daily. I wish she could see the warriors who are, in fact, stage IV cancer patients, but still make the extra effort to be there for their friends. I wanted to remind her that her parents did not have to be at that appointment with her, they made the decision to be. Give them some respect, lady. Even if you do feel crappy, don't be hurtful. I think life is tough enough.

The point of sharing this story is that I honestly believe a positive attitude can do wonders for you, not just with cancer but with your daily life. Things get scary sometimes. I have days where I am terrified. Days where I am ticked off at the world. I embrace with those feelings, and then I deal with it. If people crumbled because of one bad thing (no matter how horrible it is) happened to them, well, we would be surrounded by a lot of miserable people, huh?

The truth is, sh*t happens sometimes. That is a part of life. You accept it, you deal with it, and you move on in any type of way you can.

I sure hope she finds the peace that she so obviously needs.

OK. Rant over.