WELCOME TO THE WAGON CIRCLE

Options
nosurrender
nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
edited June 2014 in Life After Breast Cancer
Welcome to the Wagon Circle.

I think you will like it here.

The women in the Circle have found their way here from the Newly Diagnosed Forum, the Moving Beyond Forum and the Recurrance and Metastatic Forum. You see, there are no criteria to becoming a member here. Just like there is no criteria for getting breast cancer. We all, somehow, wound up with it. We may be newbies. We may have completed our treatments, we may be trying to live in our New Normal after we have completed everything they have asked of us, and we also may be facing our biggest fear: having done everything we could possibly do to beat it and it has returned.

All our cancers are different. No two pathologies are alike, all our realities of having this disease are different too. That is why all our Wagons are so different. You will see every shape, size, color and adornment on these wagons. But as different as they are they are still in a circle, a circle of strength, courage, friendship and hope. We have been blessed to have found our Sisters – sisters who understand everything we are going through and just “get it” without our having to explain.

We gather ‘round the fire and keep each other company, share a hug or a tear, laugh a great deal of the time, and do our best to keep those of us who are going through especially hard times feeling safe and loved and cared for.

We are family. We take care of each other and even have a place for your kin should you want to bring them.

There is no membership- no special code- the ticket of admission is an open heart. Just come on in and make yourself at home. We have plenty of horses and mules too. There is always an open spot by the fire…. No matter where you are in your journey, if you want to be with women who understand what it is to live with this disease, who all become newbies again with each scary test and scan, who all have walked the same path you have, then just follow the smell of the woodsmoke from our bonfires and come join us among the laughter and the cocoa and the stars.



Love,
No Surrender (g)
· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
«1345678

Comments

  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited December 2006
    "A brave heart. A curious heart. Everyone has deep inside the heart of a hunter. I call it to come and live outside for a while to hear my stories and see the wildness of my land"
    Jackton, Masaai Tribesman

    Come to the Circle and hear our stories and see the wildness of our land... but remember that you are always safe within the Circle.


    "If you have a lot, give some of your possessions. If you have little, give some of your heart." Nilotic African Proverb
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • b445
    b445 Member Posts: 1,325
    edited December 2006

    Well said NS. Am glad to see our circle is unbroken! May it always be fill with the love we have to share!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited December 2006
    Come join us, come join us oh wont you just come join us. This is the best and safest place on these boards.

    Im joining in saying welcome to everyone.

    Nicki
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited December 2006
    WELCOME EVERYONE!!!
    Please come and sit by the fire and have some fun!!!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • evilelf
    evilelf Member Posts: 1,066
    edited December 2006
    and have a cup of hot cocoa with extra marshmallows or marshmallow cream
    peace
    vera
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited December 2006
    And s'mores and brownies or some hot spiced cider with RUM!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • tflowers
    tflowers Member Posts: 442
    edited December 2006

    And loving words by fellow sisters!! How beautiful and special is all who stop by our fires and talk about our lives. xoxo

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • sherloc
    sherloc Member Posts: 1,047
    edited December 2006
    O my gosh we got our own forum????
    Well how cool is that. Buttttt wheres the old thread? I can't seem to find it.
    Hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas. Will be here at my daughters house for the rest of the week.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited December 2006
    I asked Melissa to give this post a sticky so newcomers can see what the Circle is all about.
    If you are looking for the original thread just look for "Time to circle the wagons girls" and you will be home again!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited December 2006

    Thank you Tami!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited December 2006
    TO get a feel of the love and comraderie here, please read the first couple of pages of Time to Circle the Wagons....
    Makes you proud to be a Circle Girl- no matter WHEN you joined!!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Deese
    Deese Member Posts: 144
    edited December 2006

    Tami and Melissa thank you !!!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • TheShopMama
    TheShopMama Member Posts: 577
    edited January 2007

    The wagon circle... warm fires... hot chocolate... warm friends.... sounds like a comforting place to me. Not too sure about riding horses or even mules at this point, but would it be okay if I just sit here with you under the stars and try to melt my frozen heart by the fire? Pam

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • newvickie
    newvickie Member Posts: 3,939
    edited January 2007
    We will melt your frozen heart Pam...with love and compassion, caring and gentle sweet hugs...come join us sister.
    Hugs
    Vickie
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited January 2007
    Pam, come sit by me today and help me figure out what the heck to do with black eyed peas and lentils... I could use a hand! If all else fails i have chocolate!!!

    WELCOME my friend!!!!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • lizws
    lizws Member Posts: 1,892
    edited January 2007
    Pam, welcome to the circle. We'll do anything and everything to help you out. Come sit by the fire and take each day as it comes. You've had a very rough year. We're here for you. Join us.

    Hugs
    Liz
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • csp
    csp Member Posts: 2,765
    edited January 2007
    Paaammmmm !!
    I have the biggest smile !! Welcome sweet lady !!
    Just jump right in both feet right in the middle.
    I'll go get you some hot chocolate while you and G figure out the whole black eye pea thing !

    Hugs&Love,
    Carrie
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • beth1225
    beth1225 Member Posts: 1,061
    edited January 2007
    Hi and I love your title. I am not into shopping as much as I used to be way back when I was single. But I do love the new Wegman's that has opened. I think I forgot to put htat in my gold box. Anyway, welcome and please stay and share or just feel good reading our posts. I just started here and feel so much better since having done it. i also make great cookies and hope to experiment on some new recipes. Gotta scoot, but stick around for the fun!!
    Beth
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • TheShopMama
    TheShopMama Member Posts: 577
    edited January 2007

    What a wonferful, warm welcome. And yes, ma'am, I would love that cup of hot chocolate. Pure chocolate. I can sure help with the blackeye peas... but would somebody tell me what lentils are? (blush) Pam

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited January 2007
    Well right now they are these little green things sitting in a bag looking very sad. I think I soak them and make soup out of them.... I would rather have the hot chocolate!!
    Glad to see you post!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited January 2007
    Repost from Other Thread asking What is the Wagon Circle?
    We all have wagons- you can pick yours out and make it anything you like. We also have a corral filled with horses, donkeys, mules and one ornery cat.
    <-------------------------------------

    We have the outer circle where we hang out. We have the inner circle that is close to the fire to keep girls going through rough times safe and warm. We have three bon fires constantly blazing, one for the sisterhood, one for strength and one for hope.

    We have a party tent with chocolate fountains and a buffet you wouldn't believe. We have a pissy tent for people to go when they are just sick and tired of being sick and tired. We have a spa tent. we have a hoochie tent which is more like a roadside bar. We have a deliverence tent for rat boyfriends and bad husbands and ex's. We have a tent for just about any mood.. even a purple tent!

    We also have a cook wagon where chow is served, and you will usually be awakened by the smell of the coffee from it in the morning. at night you can smell the supper slowly cooking.

    There is always someone awake to hang out with. Someone who has had the same thing you have had who understands what you are going through. And there is always someone who just just GETS IT ALL the time.

    We are sisters. We are friends. We are fellow soldiers and cowgirls.... we are circle girls.

    Here the world is better. Nothing is brushed under the rug because it is too unpleasant to talk about- but if you want to stew on something a bit, go to the pissy tent until you feel ready to talk about it- we can wait.

    If you are having scans and are scared to death- this is the place. If you are celebrating another year of being NED- this is the place. If you just had a wonderful time with one of your children- this is the place. And if your husband is a bum- the deliverance tent is the place.

    We share and laugh and never bother with petty things because out here, under the stars, in the crisp woodsmoke scented mountain air, all that really matters is that we get through this hand we were dealt and do it with an attitude of giving and compassion and love.

    We patrol the perimeter for The Beast and keep It away. And we have the BEST parties!

    That is what the Wagon Circle is- a warm place to go when the rest of the world turns cold.

    WELCOME!!!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • sunshine55
    sunshine55 Member Posts: 5
    edited January 2007
    Just pulled up a chair... i feel so safe here.

    love and hugs to all.
    Joan.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • AlaskaDeb
    AlaskaDeb Member Posts: 2,601
    edited January 2007
    Welcome Joan. Come join us in the main thread and say HI

    Hugs,
    Deb C.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited January 2007
    Hello Joan!
    Make sure you pick out a wagon and then go down to the corral and pick your horse or mule!
    WELCOME!!!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • TeddyJudy
    TeddyJudy Member Posts: 104
    edited January 2007
    What a beautiful thread. I am not really new, but pretty new to message boards. Been on Chat for 2 years.

    Judy
    2 years out, IDC, Stage I, Grade 3 Lumpectomy w/reduction
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited January 2007
    Judy, So glad you joined us! Come hang out in the main thread so you can pick yourself out a nice wagon and a horse (or mule!) that suits you!!!
    We are from everywhere across the US and all over the world!
    It is a wonderful place.

    image
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • caaclark
    caaclark Member Posts: 936
    edited January 2007

    I have occationally lurked around the wagon circle. Seems like such a nice group I decided to join. Oh, and figured this was the perfect day to do it since it was exactly a year ago today that I was diagnosed. Hoping for a much better year in '07!!!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited January 2007
    Hi Carol!
    Happy ONE YEAR WITH NED!!!!
    It feels great to get to that first year, doesn't it???
    Come on over to the circle and pick out a wagon, then head down the corral and see if there is a horse or mule to your liking. After that, the cook tent is always open and usually around this time the chocolate tent is pretty busy!

    Welcome!
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • ArmyNavyMom
    ArmyNavyMom Member Posts: 303
    edited January 2007
    What a great thread! I'm pulling up my camp chair, and filling both hands with dark chocolate --- purely for the medicinal benefits, of course!

    I do have a question for those of you who are ahead of me on the trail --- it seems like the closer I get to the end of my treatment plan, the more fearful I become; how am I going to manage without all the support from my onc and the nurses, is it really gone, all that sort of stuff. It seems very strange that I could come so far only to become a basket case now. Did anybody else experience this?
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • nosurrender
    nosurrender Member Posts: 2,019
    edited January 2007
    Hi Armynavy!!
    I remember when you were just starting chemo... now look at you! A graduate! Congratulations and WELCOME!!!!

    Yes, it is scary when you stop treatment, because it is as if you are asked to go out onto a battlefield without any tanks or ammo! And I see you are a triple neg so we really don't have any ammo!

    The reason they let us "loose" is because chemo and rads have done their job. YOUR job now is to HEAL. To take a step back and let your WHOLE SELF heal, even the part that kept that strong facade up with your family... now is the time to let yourself feel the enormity of what you just went through and go through the process of mourning it and then you can move on.

    Will you always be scared? Yes. To some degree you will feel like cancer is stalking you. But as time passes and your doctor appointments get fewer and fewer it lessens a great deal!

    What CAN you do?? BE PROACTIVE! Since you are a triple neg, know that a low fat diet really helps keep er/pr neg cells from returning... get exercise....and BE GOOD TO YOURSELF.

    If something doesn't seem right, get it checked out right away. You will be watched like a hawk now so IF anything will be found it will be in its earliest stages.. BUT that is a big IF because being a triple neg means that your chemo worked BETTER on your cancer cells.

    So Armynavy, it is my pleasure to not only welcome you to the Wagon Circle, but to introduce you to NED. He is your new dancing partner... he is wonderful and likes to hold us tight. Don't let go!

    Come on over to the main thread and pick out your horse and wagon... and bring that CHOCOLATE!!!


    Love,
    g
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Categories