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as told by Suzanne Wirrer
My mother told me it was rude to listen to other people’s conversations, so she would have scolded me today. I was in the waiting area of Radiation Oncology in the East Building. I had just finished my radiation treatment and was waiting for another doctor’s appointment. While I sat there, putting together a puzzle, I listened to the conversations going on around me.
 Never in my life would I have thought I would enjoy sitting in a waiting room outside a place like Radiation Oncology. And never would I have imagined it would be inspiring. Up to this point in my life, I would have thought it rather depressing! But these people—cancer patients—were talking with each other like long-time friends, when in fact, they had only met in the course of their treatments. Some had met and talked before, others for the first time.
One would ask another, “What kind of cancer do you have?” “How long have you had it?” “What kind of treatments have you had.” “Back when I first had breast cancer, there was only one treatment for it.” “How many more treatments do you have?” Like always, everywhere you go in life, they had their stories to tell. They were all in surprisingly good moods.
Most of the people around me were talking. I’m a listener and that is what I enjoy. As I listened today to the people tell their stories, it felt like sitting in sunshine; the warm glow radiated around that room. Charlie, the therapy dog, gave an added lift to the place. Nancy, the “Goodies Lady,” was there, too. On Thursdays, she brings in things like her melt-in-your-mouth fudge, strawberries, angel food cake and other things to lift our spirits.
I was inspired. All of these people, with their cancer diagnoses, were gathered in this room by chance. They gave their support freely to others just by listening, letting others voice their stories. Most of them are perfect strangers with one thing in common to talk about—Cancer.
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