Strength and Wisdom Part II

I didn't share this in my original post about Lisa and Todd. I wanted to respect her wishes and her privacy, but she just gave me permission to share her story, and I think it's a very important one at that.

A few weeks ago when Lisa originally contacted me about taking their photos, I was so excited to hear from her. As a I read a little further down the email, she shared with me that the pictures would have even more special meaning because she had just been diagnosed with breast cancer. After my initial shock and sadness for my friend, I realized that there is always hope, and as long as I have known Lisa, she has been a strong willed individual. If anyone could beat cancer, it would be Lisa! It also made me think of my own father, who has been a cancer survivor for about 20 years now. The typical life expectancy with the type of bone cancer my dad has is about 3 years. I have plenty of reason to believe that with the right treatments, attitude, and courage, Lisa has her whole life ahead of her!

A day before the photo shoot, I contacted Lisa again to finalize the plans. We were gonna play it by ear, just wanting to make sure that the weather was going to cooperate. Lisa had another examination since our first contact, and she told me that they also found out that she has Bone Cancer, and she is Stage 4 at this point. That sounded really bad to me, but Lisa still sounded upbeat and positive about the whole situation. I thought that was amazing.

I sat at the computer for a little while and cried as I thought about it. I couldn't help but think of my wife, and family. What would I do if we faced the same circumstances. Would we be able to be as brave and strong. After those thoughts, I started to feel a little pressure about the photo shoot. These photos would have a lot of meaning to Lisa and Todd. Will I be able to capture the spirit of hope and love that Lisa was looking for. I then started to feel very honored that Lisa trusted me, and asked me to do such an important photo shoot for her.

Well, I had such a great time with Lisa and Todd. We were able to talk a little about everything, and I can say that they have such a great attitude towards it. Todd said there's no reason to lay down and cry about it. You have to do everything you can and fight. Keep smiling, and try to be as positive as possible. I know Lisa can beat this.

Thanks Lisa and Todd for your great examples. Our family prays for you and we're here for whatever you need! You two are awesome!