This message is too important not to send.  It is NOT about yarn at all.  I hope just one person can benefit from this.  Pass this email on if it might help someone else.
 
Many of you have been through the breast cancer ordeal yourselves or have a close friend or family member who has.  Those of you with whom I have had the opportunity to discuss Bonnie's situation have been so incredibly helpful, thoughtful, and supportive with your prayers.  We cannot thank you enough.  You may have met my sister at TNNA at my booth, or you probably have seen her modeling Farmhouse designs in my patterns.  She was diagnosed with breast cancer early in the summer, she has since had two surgeries, and she just recently completed radiation treatments.  Her life is returning back to normal now, thank goodness.
 
Bonnie and I have been talking about sharing her story with you for a while now.  She suggested that because this month is Breast Cancer Awareness month, that it would be timely.  I have been putting it off pretty much because there is so much discussion in the media about the subject, I wasn't sure what we could add that could be beneficial or how to present it to you.  So, I will simply lay it out there and tell you her story and why it deserves attention.
 
We all have been taught to check our breasts regularly for lumps.  Most of the information out there that Bonnie and I have heard and read discusses the importance of thorough self-examination in the search for lumps.  Even though the information is out there, what can be easily missed is that not all breast cancer presents itself at first as a lump.  If Bonnie had waited to find a lump, I would be writing to you a very, very different letter, maybe not a good one.
 
You probably know Bonnie does a lot of work for Farmhouse Yarns.  She dyes the Bonnie's Bamboo, I Am Allergic to Wool, Cotton Blossom Yarn by Dixie, and Mary's Little Lamb.  And, she makes all of those baby sample skeins and the pages for your color card books.  I travel to Bonnie's (she lives in Myrtle Beach) just about each month to take work to her and to pick up her completed work.  It's a long trip from Connecticut, but it has worked out great for us.  We get to spend a couple of days together regularly that we would not normally do if she was working for another company.  It's a lot of driving, and we work hard, but we have fun, too.
 
The trip in May wasn't so fun.  She told me about a slight dimple she had in her right breast that she was getting checked out.  No big deal, she said, but since she had a mammogram a few years ago that showed a suspicious spot that turned out to be nothing, she thought it wise to get it checked out.  No family history at all here, mind you.  I asked her if I could see the dimple, so she showed me.  Let me tell you, it was ever so slight.  Most people would not have even seen it, much less pay attention to it.  Thank goodness she did.  There was absolutely no lump to be seen or felt.  It turned out to be a tumor that was 1-1/2 centimeters, and it was very close to the surface.  IT COULD NOT BE FELT!  And, it was CANCER.
 
Until you or someone close to you goes through this, you cannot imagine what it does to your world.  It's like you have been hit by a train.  I went through the motions of TNNA like a zombie, and all Bonnie could say is that it seemed as if the whole thing was unreal--as if it wasn't really happening to her.  She had a lumpectomy, then two weeks later had to go back to have more margin tissue removed.  Then there was the waiting.  Each time she phoned me with an update, it seemed like the news was getting worse and worse.  But then, after tissue testing was completed, her doctor recommended radiation, no chemotherapy necessary, as it was caught at a very early stage.  We will never look at life in the same way we did before the cancer.  Nor will we take anything for granted.  Thank goodness Bonnie did not have to go through masectomy or chemo, and we pray she never does.  When I think about the women I know who have been through this, I cannot tell you how much I admire their strength, courage, and the friends and family who have helped them through it all.
 
Bottom line, don't wait to find a lump.  Look at your breasts, and pay attention to any and all changes and abnormalities that you notice.  It's probably nothing, but don't assume that.  It doesn't take much to just get it checked out.  And, don't miss your regular mammograms.  Please.  The world, your friends, and your family want you to be here for a while.
 
Best of health to you all,
Carol
at Farmhouse Yarns, LLC