The "Time Stamped" Bucket List

F O U R Months. . . 

 

What would you do with your time if you found out that your days may be coming to an end?...and there was nothing you could do to change it?...

 

In FOUR short months, one of my closest friends Alyssa, will be informed whether or not her cancer treatment options have been exhausted. If so, she’s been advised to consider making the most of "the time she has left". Time she has left? Alyssa is 33 years old. She has two beautiful little girls; Oaklee aged 3 and Rylee aged 5, who need their mother now more than ever.

Alyssa discovered she had breast cancer while she was working alongside me as a nurse on a maternity unit in October of 2022. Alyssa was started on oral chemotherapy and was forced to resign from her job before things got very real. She then underwent a segmental mastectomy to remove the masses in her left breast while also removing multiple affected lymph nodes. After more than a year of harsh chemotherapy infusion, mixed in with some very difficult medical treatments, Alyssa's body has weakened and her kidney function is less than optimal. Fast forward to now, Alyssa received the news just prior to the turn of the new year, that her cancer was aggressively spreading and has metastasized to her lungs and left kidney. She is not strong enough to undergo surgery as a treatment option and she has been left with these crushing words.. "We can try radiation for four months and we will see if it is effective. If it is not, there's not much more we can do for you …and you should really consider having that hard talk with your family members."

 

My brave friend has somehow started to digest the fact that she could possibly have a finite number of days left to live; her "time stamp" as she calls it. Alyssa has made a bucket list of things she wants to do before her "time stamp" is up, but due to her most recent past and current situation, that has not been something she could plan or financially afford.

Among spending all of the time she can with her loved ones, she dreams about swimming with dolphins, visiting Greece, and seeing the northern lights while admiring the beauty of them from inside an igloo. Alyssa is and has always been this fun life-loving free spirit, whom would love to learn sign language, dance salsa, drive stick shift, learn to play guitar, and go bungee jumping! (Crazy girl, I know!)

 

While considering all of the things she would LOVE to do with what time she has left, the fear of financial burden is very much present too. Alyssa’s care has caused tremendous stress on her family, which has in-turn been weighing heavily on her as well.  Between the back and forth to treatments and all of the medical expenses, it has been a whirlwind in which so many have sacrificed so much to help make this as seamless as possible for her.  While forever grateful for this, she understands the burden that puts on them all, too. Alyssa deserves a temporary escape from wearing that guilt and burden.

 

By the time that 4 month treatment window is up and Alyssa finds out her fate, my goal is to raise enough to send her off to complete as much off of her bucket list as possible. Regardless of the news to be received come mid-June, Alyssa deserves to go live life as if every day is her last... without actually knowing if it may very well be. There are SO many experiences to be had still, and so many memories she is yearning to make with her little girls by her side. Life is not done here yet and there is important work to be done.

PLEASE HELP ME MAKE IT HAPPEN! From the bottom of my heart, thank you for reading. Anything helps; even a $10 donation. If you cannot contribute, that is okay, but you can help in another way by sharing this page and helping to spread the word! Most importantly though… Prayers, infinite Prayers for a Miracle, are incredibly welcomed and appreciated. Thank you again & God Bless.

 

Alyssa, my friend, who has become more like a sister, I am inspired by your courage, strength, and resilience. I find strength in my own struggles when I put into perspective the very full plate you juggle with grace on a daily basis. We will overcome this. WE are HERE, WITH & FOR YOU, every step of the way. LET'S GO HANDLE THAT BUCKET LIST!

✅ LEARN TO SEW