Gratitude Beyond the Table(and Some Really Good News)

Good News, Great Friends, and Why Gratitude Matters Every Day

Hey friend,

As you're reading this, Thanksgiving is just two days away. And I want to talk about gratitude—but not the kind we pull out once a year like holiday decorations and prop up as an extra guest at our Thanksgiving table.

I'm talking about the kind of gratitude that shifts your perspective. The kind that offers a little magic when you need it most.

This week on The Grit Show (Episode 138: "Is Gratitude Enough?"), I dive into how we can actually integrate gratitude into our daily lives. Not as a nice idea, but as a practice that genuinely changes how we move through hard seasons. If you've been following along on this journey, you know gratitude has been part of what's helped me get through. It's kept me grounded. It's made this whole experience so much more manageable—and so much less overwhelming—than it could have been.

And honestly? I'm deeply grateful for that.

Gotta Keep Celebrating! - Some Really Good News

Speaking of gratitude: my biopsy results for endometrial cancer came back as NOT cancerous.

We’ve mentioned how important it is to actually pause and celebrate that for a second, even if I was already telling myself it wasn’t the case… We need to fully exhale. And I'm definitely counting it as a reason to celebrate.

I had another test sent off this morning, and I've got another scheduled next week. The best news is that by a lovely cosmic twist I’ve landed a Primary Cary Doc I’m thrilled about and finally feel like there is a partner in trying to get to the bottom of things. So, I’ve also got an appointment in a couple weeks with a specialist.

I'm optimistic. If they find anything, I believe it's going to be something manageable. Something resolvable. Maybe even something that's always been there that no one ever took the time to look at closely before. I’m grateful that I feel like I have a team and that I’m moving closer to answers, that feels much better than the last couple months of that started with “We treat this as endometrial cancer.”… and then taking forever to not get much further.

What’s Next? Life After Surgery & NED

I recently listened to a naturopath speak specifically to Breast Cancer Survivors, and everything she said resonated with me. I took pages of notes!! She presented a lot of scientific research and evidence (which, if you know me, you know I need that).

Right now I’m taking the NED (No Evidence of Disease) and mentally I’m logging that as Cancer-free - for my well being. I’m aware that they are still hunting down other concerns in my body. I know that Breast Cancer does come back. I am being smart about, even if I’m setting myself free mentally. The concern is less about a new cancer and more about recurrence. About the same breast cancer showing up somewhere else. The concern is there are dormant cells still in my body (as I had an invasive cancer), and the goal is to make sure those cells never wake up and multiply.

I connected with someone early in my diagnosis who had breast cancer a few years before me. She reached out from one of my posts online and was very thoughtful and supportive. Recently, she ended up in the ER with back pain that physical therapy hadn't helped. Turned out a tumor had broken through her spine. Breast cancer often comes back in the bones, and it can be really hard to treat when it does.

So my focus now? Making choices that make it harder for any lingering cells to develop into cancer—or easier for my body to get rid of them now when they are easier to eradicate.

This naturopath shared the actual studies showing what things to reduce (red meat, sugary drinks) that were shown to lower recurrence rates of breast cancer in control groups. Real evidence. Not just someone's good idea or the latest wellness trend that might or might not make a difference.

I'm so grateful for this information. It means I can focus on lifestyle adjustments that actually matter, instead of chasing my tail doing a million things that limit my life but don’t really moving the needle.

Here’s to a concrete path to real changes!

The People Who Show Up

When I had that endometrial biopsy, it was way more painful than I expected. Which surprised me—and surprised my friend who came with me—because I weathered a lot during my breast cancer surgeries and took the pain in stride.

They were trying to get a second sample, waiting for the pain to stop, and I told them to just get it done because the pain wasn't ebbing and the sooner they did the second attack on me - the sooner it was over. Not fun.

But here's what I want to tell you about: the friend who was there holding my hand.

Kim Liszka has become one of those people I'm endlessly grateful for. I met her less than six months after moving to Bend (picture at the very top is us on her birthday the summer before). She’d only known me a few months when she was my "dress angel"—and went to advocate for me when the last bits of my wedding dress fitting weren’t going as they should have.

Shen breast cancer showed up? She stepped in and stepped up in ways I'll never forget.

She stayed with me once a week early on so Robie could have a morning off and she could help with my showers. (She actually came to the hospital and learned how to help me shower so Robie could have a back up!) She visited regularly throughout my journey. And yes, she literally held my hand during that not-so-fun biopsy.

Kim is that local friend who showed up in the most beautiful way.

And then there's Tiffany—the balance to Kim's story. I've known Tiffany since 8th grade. We met on a mission trip in Mexico (she was in high school, I was in 8th grade), and we’ve stayed friends ever since - even while she lived internationally with the Air Force and years since while I moved all over the place.

This past June, when Robie needed to get back to work and I still needed support, Tiffany was able to be here to support the transition. She even sat down and helped me with the spreadsheet to track all the medical bills and payments from all the providers—something that was completely overwhelming me. I’m not even sure where the time came from - but she also helped with a yard sale that in the end made this move so much easier.

The picture above is Kim, Tiffany, and I this summer when Tiffany was in town and we were all together for an afternoon where they were both making sure I was well tended to!

(Side note: there are still boxes everywhere. Not a single room is fully unpacked. I'm giving myself until the end of the year. That's still another month, right? Right now there are other priorities, but we'll get there eventually.)

These two women—one I've known since middle school, one I've known for just a couple years—both showed up exactly when I needed them.….

Your Turn to Reflect

As we wind down this year and head into Thanksgiving, I want to invite you to take a moment. Who has shown up for you this past year? What moments made this past year more manageable, less lonely, more hopeful?

You've heard me talk about Robie and how grateful I am for him (that goes without saying, but I'll keep saying it anyway). But there are others too. People who show up in unexpected ways. People who hold your hand when things hurt. People who help you make sense of overwhelming spreadsheets.

This Thanksgiving, I'm sitting with gratitude for Kim and Tiffany. For the naturopath who gave me a roadmap forward, for the new Primary Care Provider that will be a partner in figuring out what’s next with other mysteries. For biopsy results that let me breathe a little easier. For you, reading these letters and being part of this journey with me.

What are you grateful for?

If you want to explore it more, come sit with me for a bit on this week's episode of The Grit Show (or put that earbud on and let me join you for a walk, cleaning, cooking…) together we can explore how to make gratitude a daily practice instead of a once-a-year tradition. I think you'll find it worth your time.

Listen to Episode 138: "Is Gratitude Enough?" wherever you get your podcasts, or this link will give you some options.

Thanks for being here.

With gratitude,
Shawna