My 2025 Journey

To explain how 2025 has been difficult, it takes a little bit of backstory.

Summer 2023

In the summer of 2023, somewhat out of the blue, my husband Guy started to not feel great. He was a healthy man - regular gym workouts, runner - but was having intestinal issues. He went to the ER on a holiday weekend. They said colitis, it will clear up.

It didn't - several weeks later, no better, definitely worse.

Long story short, after a loooong day at the ER (sent to from his primary care), they said the word. Cancer. Stage 4 colon cancer.

But surgery went well! Immunotherapy was an option!

Except... it didn't work. Got that news *just* before Christmas.
Ugh.

2024: Fighting Back

January 2024 started chemo - 12 rounds, intense.

It WORKED - YAY!

"Final" surgery in August - cleaning things up, checking for anything left - it was almost a year to the DAY of initial diagnosis.

Checking again on things and.... early September - Cancer FREE! YAY!!

He was looking SO healthy for our son's wedding in October! The happiness - the joy, the love!!

Christmas was good! After the previous year when we had just found out the immunotherapy didn't work, this was so nice.

Then 2025 Came

Guy had been getting periodic cat scans to check on things. First few - great! Nothing there.

Then one in early January.

Cancer is back. In his liver.

Ok, no problem. We got rid of it before, we'll get rid of this.

Treatment starts. But he got sick. Really sick. Blockage, needed some surgery - ok, no problem.

That was February.

Then March.

Oh. I get laid off. What? Wait.
That's completely unexpected...
And the job market is THE WORST ever. EVER.
Ok, deep breath, chin up. Things will get better.

But.

Guy keeps getting sicker. And sicker.

(No job prospects either.)

Life limps along...

May

It's May. He's getting sicker. Made him get looked at. His levels are BAD. Have to go to the ER, get admitted... on a Wednesday.

By Friday they're talking hospice - his liver is failing.

By Sunday at noon, he said he was in pain.

By two, we lost him.

2025 legitimately is the worst year of my life.

There were other bad things happening, but those are the highlights. Low lights.

But somewhere in there, the email came from Ande about Craftworks... and that was the start of the rebuilding of joy.

Rebuilding

Family and friends. Saving graces.

Guy was one of the most wonderful, funny, smart, sarcastic, caring, handsome and awesome men on the planet. The love of my life.



But life does go on.

Some days it goes well, some days... well, it goes on.

And Craftworks has become part of that going on. Part of the joy. Part of the rebuilding. Part of finding light again.

Jen