How to Stay Strong
It has been a month since I lost my mother, and one day since my father has been moved out from the ICU. Love is a powerful thing; it can burn bridges or save lives, it’s a reason for living. My father in November was diagnosed with multiple stage 4 cancers, during his treatment he never experienced any side effects, he was never sick, never lost his hair or skin color. You would have never in a million years thought he was going through chemo treatments. He was cured of two of the four cancers, and only had a “smidgen” of cancer left. Doctors called him a medical marvel.
Three weeks after my mothers passing, my father was rushed to the hospital, I was offshore the coast of Greenland, above the Arctic Circle, on a new job contract. When I heard the news, my life shattered. I couldn’t imagine loosing both of my parents, my father is the strongest man I know. The company I just started working for, One Ocean Expeditions, bent over backwards and got me back to the States so quickly to be there with my father. I couldn’t be more grateful for their support this whole time.
When you work in the industries I do, and have experienced life hardships I have, you learn to trust and rely on your support team back home. You have your plans, you know your team, but you never know how everything is going to turn out. My friends and family were checking in and spending time with my father, helping him adapt to his new life. My parents were together for 41 years. When they knew something was wrong, my uncles got him to his doctor, where he was then rushed to the hospital. I couldn’t believe I had friends with my father within minutes of finding out, and they where there by his side until I got to the hospital. It was such a comforting feeling, knowing my father wasn’t alone, and he was with someone I could trust.
I couldn’t be more thankful to have such kind and genuinely amazing people in my life, who have been there for my father and I. They still don’t have a full explanation for my father’s symptoms, but thankfully he is doing much better. We can just take it one day at a time, and continue to pray for the best.
