9 Moons Ago

Well, there is no easy way to break the news.
In this post I am telling closest family and friend, alike. Until now I’ve only told a handful of people. I decided I wanted some time to process it all before putting it out there for folks to read.

In the past few weeks, I’ve been in and out of doctors’ office’s and the Women’s Health Center for exams, mammograms, ultrasound and a biopsy. On the fourth of June, I was diagnosed with breast cancer.
The good news is that it is one spot, very small, isn’t fast-growing and the doctors and nurses I have talked to all have said that there is no question that I will recover from this. One doctor said that he can’t say that to all women who are diagnosed, but that, with treatment, I will be just fine.

I am scheduled to have an mri next week, so they can detect anything else that might look suspicious. After that I’ll meet with my doctor to schedule surgery, which will remove the nodule and a bit of the tissue surrounding it. After the surgery, I will have radiation and chemo treatments and will lose my hair, temporarily. That’s actually one of the things that will be hard for me, I have to admit. There are times when it all feels overwhelming and scary, but they’ve given me lots of great information about what to expect and numbers to call if I need help with anything. For the most part, I am happy and working on sewing projects, photography and gardening. Lots of good get-togethers with friends and family are in the works, too.

So, I’m sure I’ll be filling everyone in, as I learn more myself. Please feel free to ask any questions you might have, I won’t be offended. And also feel free to pass this along to any mutual family and friends, especially if they don’t spend any/much time online.

I guess God/the Universe/Whatever-you-like-to call-it decided I was ready for another big challenge! Personally, I wouldn’t have minded a little bit of a break, since I’ve just been getting back on my feet after a doozy of a year in 2008. But it is not up to me, and I won’t stress over what can not be changed. Actually, I have to admit that this year I have been feeling more inner-strength. Might as well put it to good use! :-D

Taking it one day at a time!
Lots of love to all my amazing supporters!
xoxoxo Amy

Have just scanned 2 new portraits, drawn from old family photos:

To see the rest of the photostream, just click here:

Buttons McTavish’s aka Amy Lehr’s Flickr

Just thought I’d share something which I find appealing, both as an artist who loves portraiture and the stories behind a face, as well as someone who has always been fascinated with old photos and genealogy.

Click to see The Rogues Gallery

This article shares the way people at the last turn of the century in Britain were dealt with for public drunkenness and the behavior which accompanied it. And, as for these faces, as an artist who loves to draw/paint portraits, they are a wealth of rugged terrain. Most of these subjects are pretty much caricatures already. Some are hard to look at and imagine their life, some so comical through the sadness. Some, just “Yikes!”
They are pathetic, doleful, comical, angry, dazed, ashamed, scary and strange all at once. They obviously had hard and sorrowful lives, aged prematurely and were no strangers to violence…

I had to pull out one of my favorites, who someone expertly pegged as Elmira Gulch from the Wizard of Oz. I also kept thinking of her as an extremely dour Mary Poppins. You’ll pick her out, no problem. Here are some visual cues:

Here’s to hoping we never have to endure such a fate! Cheers!

THE SONG OF WANDERING AENGUS

by: W.B. Yeats

WENT out to the hazel wood,
Because a fire was in my head,
And cut and peeled a hazel wand,
And hooked a berry to a thread;

And when white moths were on the wing,
And moth-like stars were flickering out,
I dropped the berry in a stream
And caught a little silver trout.

When I had laid it on the floor
I went to blow the fire a-flame,
But something rustled on the floor,
And some one called me by my name:
It had become a glimmering girl
With apple blossom in her hair
Who called me by my name and ran
And faded through the brightening air.

Though I am old with wandering
Through hollow lands and hilly lands,
I will find out where she has gone,
And kiss her lips and take her hands;
And walk among long dappled grass,
And pluck till time and times are done
The silver apples of the moon,
The golden apples of the sun.