A VERY Large Thought About the "What If-ness" of Life's Connections

I'm a little overwhelmed this morning after my quick Sunday morning bombshell. The comments, well wishes, and just outreach of support has been beyond what I (and my family) could have ever imagined. I know we know a lot of people but DAYUM.

Gather round and let me tell you a little story about something I've noticed. Again, I'll reiterate there have been drugs in my system for a few weeks now, but I have this mental image that I cannot escape that I feel must be shared.

There is a scene in one of the Robert Downey, Jr. Sherlock Holmes movies (Jeff has pointed out to me it is a scene where he's on heroin). In the scene Sherlock is making connections about a crime with red twine and points to the random connections which lead to the whatever-whatevers. Here - this picture - see all the red lines? That's my mental image. Let me explain...

Throughout the experience of the seizure, CT, MRI, and biopsy, my dad has been in contact with his friends letting them know what's going on with me. Just connecting and sharing with people he knows to help try to get information and guidance and support. He talked to several family friends that made some powerful recommendations and connections for us. 

One of these conversations was with the Steen Family, who my dad met 30 years ago in Singapore through work, formed a bond with and have remained close friends. They continue this friendship today via hunting and mutual appreciation of each other. Now, Mr. Jeff Steen has a brother, Jennings, who lives in Austin, and he and his wife, Yuni, live next door to a partner and oncologist with Texas Oncology. My dad was sharing with his friend and they immediately said, "you have to let our neighbor look at her films before anything else." 30 years ago people - next door neighbors! Partners with one of the most well respected neuro-oncologists in Austin, Texas!! 

Now, another red piece of twine. My dad has managed a hunting ranch near Junction, Texas for 12 years. One of the families that hunted on the ranch over 10 years ago was the Allen Family. Lu Allen and her husband, Tim, have their own history and experience with cancer - but Lu also works at MD Anderson and has for a long time. Dad was sharing what was happening with them and shortly after I was discharged, Dad texted me right as I was going to bed and told me Lu recommended I self refer to MD Anderson - you can't hurt getting the second opinion. I woke up the next morning, got on the computer and filled out a form. I texted Lu and she started working it from the inside. I had an appointment within hours. 

I don't point all this out to talk about "it's not what you know it's who you know" but I am struck that these are people that we've met in random life situations over so many years that have been in a position to offer guidance and other connections at a critical time in my life. It's astonishing to me!

Another thread: I have been working at Slide UX for just over 3 years now after working for almost 5 at Quotient Solutions for one of my favorite human beings, John Curtis. I met my boss, Erin, at Quotient and we formed a mutual appreciation and admiration for each other. One of my life's hardest decisions was to leave Quotient - I cannot think of another life decision which was harder for me to make. I agonized leading up to that decision, cried and sobbed through the actual resignation conversation, and continued to obsess over it after I did it. One of my main motivators at the time was that I wanted to have another baby. I just didn't know how it was all going to work out but realized it wasn't going to work in my current situation. I reached out to Erin because of a job posting I saw where there was a project management opportunity and that company was one of her clients at her agency. I wanted to see if she could "Slide" a kind word in as I submitted my resume. She said she would, but wanted to talk to me first. From there, we talked, and I joined her team. I get to do amazingly fulfilling work that keeps me engaged and excited and working from home. 

So, these three red twines all came together in the last 2 weeks. These random people we've met along life's journey, who are now key in our lives as friends and employers, have merged in such a way that I'll continue to be employed with NO REAL CHANGES in my day-to-day life due to my inability to drive for 3 months- 6 months. I work from home. My life is quite literally configured in such a way that could not be more ideal to allowing me to "return to normal" and continue living the life I love so much. They also merged to put me in the hands of incredibly competent people to help inform our immediate next steps. 

How miraculous are the workings of the universe. We make hard decisions every day. We make easy decisions every day. We meet new people every day. And how can we not look at the way the red twine can lead us to the right destination if we let them. Hint: the Red Twine is God's hand, in my opinion. 

How much time do you have? I can keep going (and probably will in another post). One of the things that has come out of this crappy situation is a new appreciation for the connections of life and the randomness that might not really be all that random. 

I leave you with this - sorry honey - but 10 years ago, I made the best decision of my life and married an incredible man. During my appointment today, it was casually mentioned that this thing could have been growing slowly inside my head for the last 8 - 10 years. We'll never actually know this, but could it have been divine intervention to have say yes 10 years ago and a brain tumor?! You gotta be kidding me!