Kimchi is riding her leaky boat of a body into regions of the sea for which she has no charts, (with regular shouts of “Ship going down!” followed by laughter). She is laughing, crying, addressing her “bucket list”(bailing is low on the agenda), cooking, going for rides in the woods on the golf cart to visit folks and let her dog get some joyful exercise, etc. Continue reading “Ship Going Down!”
Beautiful Friend (The End?)
My closest friend has cancer and it is going to kill her. Her body that is, not HER, exactly. Her body, mind, ego, experiences and amazing personality and worldview will disappear, but not the rest of her—the spark we call soul or spirit.
Another Assignment, by Helen Zuman
When I met Kimchi, in spring 2016, I knew she had cancer; I believe I’d seen a notice in the Earthaven newsletter that she was fundraising for holistic treatment her insurance didn’t cover. But that first time I saw her traipsing up the path to Medicine Wheel, aglow in shades of teal and turquoise (and, in my memory, accompanied by the tinkle of tiny cowbells), her illness seemed like a distant threat she could easily beat. It, not she, would pass. Continue reading “Another Assignment, by Helen Zuman”