A Year Ago

Monday marked the first day of school for 6-year-old. It was a bittersweet experience. As I walked her into her classroom, it brought back memories of her first day of school last year. To say things were different back then would be an understatement.

I was eight months pregnant and happy as a clam. J-Fed and I were anticipating the birth of our second daughter. Our family was growing and the prospect was so exciting. Soon we’d have another little bundle of joy. The two of us took daughter to school and met her teacher. We snapped photos in front of the house, in the car on the way to the school, and even took a couple of shots in front of the classroom. The smiles were endless.

From there, I returned home and fed the dogs who were every bit as excited as we were. I watched them play in the yard for a few minutes and then departed for work. Throughout the day, I thought of daughter’s first day of kindergarten. I couldn’t wait to get home and see how she’d done.

That night, we enjoyed a family dinner while she told us about her first day. Then, we all settled in front of the television and watched our shows. We were a happy family… or so I thought. If only I’d known then what I know now. I had no idea that exactly one year later things would be so very different.

Fast forward 365 days and here’s what it was like. I got daughter ready for the first day of school. She was excited and so was I. The baby was crying early so I gave her a bottle and put her back to sleep. Before I could fix breakfast I cleaned up three piles of puke throughout the house, a sign that little man’s cancer was getting worse. I could barely get him out of the bed, and when I did he refused to eat. I tried to stay focused on daughter and put on a happy face despite the fact that our family pet was dying before our eyes.