Why do I think this is Important?

I have been thinking about this alot lately. It is easy to give you the statistics, information, and published word from the professionals. On the other hand, though, it is impossible to give you my experiences. The reasons why I am passionate about this topic, and why prevention is so important to me.

At the beginning of my mom's fight I really did not know what was going on, but towards the end you would have had to be a fool not to recognize what was happening. The last year with mom was a roller coaster, we all had hope and she was going to get better. In February and March the surgeons removed her two brain tumors, and shortly after she started radiation treatments. Cody, my husband, first met mom in April. She had what resembled a very badly executed Mohawk. Her hair was about five to six inches long all over her head with the exception of the front left and right side behind her ear. She still had long scars in both areas from where they had gone in and removed the tumors. Mom's face was swollen and full from the steroids, and her mind was very much like that of a child. At the time I was so happy that Cody was able to meet her, but she was not the vivacious confident Dana Deaton that I had known all of my life. The hardest part is that I really think moms mind was still completely in tact, she was just unable to express herself as she always had.

Over the course of the summer Cody and I spent as much time in Denver City as possible. One of my fondest memories from that summer was an evening Cody and I took mom to the farm. Mom had been dying to drive a car, but her surgeons had frowned upon the idea each time she asked. Cody had a little white dodge pick-up that we took out to the farm, after exiting the pavement he stopped and handed mom the keys. Her eyes lit up, she was like a kid in a candy store. Several minutes passed of adjusting seats and checking to make sure she was familiar with everything. She finally switched the gear to drive and putted along never breaking twenty. Her eyes stayed focused and she remained extremely serious about the task at hand. Mom was so proud of herself. Cody and Mom had a bond after that day, and always enjoyed each others company. Before we knew it the summer was over, and it was time for our sophomore year of college. Mom seemed very stable, overall there hadn't been any changes as far as we could see. The cancer had continued to weave its way through moms body throughout the months. Minuscule cells that the radiation had somehow missed had moved from her brain to her spinal fluid. In late October mom was finding it harder to walk and had new pain in her back. Her and dad traveled back to Lubbock on Halloween, fifteen days later mom was gone.

I don't want JB and Taylor to experience what I did with my mom. After mom died I put on a happy face, but I did not feel happy. The next several years were a struggle for me. At the time I would not have admitted that to anyone, I was fine and there was nothing wrong. Cody talks lightly of this time and calls it his "anger management intervention." We laugh about it now, but he was right I was angry. It seems so ironic that I was so unhappy during some of the happiest experiences of my life. Cody and I got married and I graduated from college. Both of these were huge milestones in my life, but deep down inside I was angry because my mom was not there. I am not sure exactly when it happened, but in the middle of all of this I had to grow up.

I have grown up, but it has not been easy. Thousands of tears have been cried, relationships have been strained, and feelings have been thoughtlessly hurt. Why do I think prevention is important? Cody, JB and Taylor, they are why this is important. I would do anything to ensure their health and well being. Being there for their milestones is so important. I intend to be there for JB and Taylor's graduations, weddings, births and birthdays of children, and everything else that is important to them. My heart would break if my children or Cody ever thought I had not tried to do everything in my power to ensure that I could be in their lives as long as possible.