I left Kinko’s with tears streaming down my face……….. Hey, wait! I thought this was a feel GOOD story? It is, just read on.
While having some work done at my local Kinko’s store, I noticed that the Kinko’s associate (Perry) had a pink wristband on. When I asked him about it, he said he was wearing it because of his wife. After a big pause wondering if I should say anymore, I asked if she was a survivor? Thankfully the answer was, “Yes.” He then went on to tell me their story.
During the week after Thanksgiving, Perry’s wife (Martha) found out she had stage 4 breast cancer in her left breast. After studying all of the results of the possibilities of it moving to the right breast, they both made the decision to have a double mastectomy. The hospital was really pushing to have the reconstructive surgery done at the same time, but Martha wanted to make sure the first surgery went well before tackling another.
After four months of treatments, she was deemed cancer free. HOORAY!
Now came the time to decide about the reconstructive surgery. Martha came to Perry and said, “Perry, I’m 60 years old and breasts aren’t as important to us as they were when we were 20. Would you mind if I didn’t have the surgery?” Perry said, “Honey, I am fine with that and will support you with any decision that you make.” Then she said, “OK, then I will not have the surgery.”
With that, they gave each other a hug. As he was hugging her, the absolute best choice of words came out of Perry’s mouth. He said, “I am glad you chose not to have the surgery, because now when I hug you, your heart is closer to mine.”
I left Kinko’s with tears streaming down my face………..
Perry, you and Martha are my new heros!