This is a beautiful guest post by Naissa Lopez about a trip she took to NYC. There is so much heart in her words, I am so grateful to her for sharing this story. Enjoy.

New York City is often referred to as the “city that never sleeps,” the “Big Apple,” and the city where you are sure to find your true love. To many southerners, New York City is a whole other world of enchantment, skyscrapers, and dreams bigger than the great state of Texas.  That’s exactly what this blog post is about; two southern women from the Lone Star State who hopped on a plane to a land of museums, enormous culture, a huge population, restaurants galore, and memories to be made.

My mom had always dreamed about going to New York City.  It was her dream destination for so many years, but the responsibilities of our constantly-changing lives kept her from fulfilling that desire.  During my first summer break from graduate school, I figured that I’d somehow muster up the opportunity to help my mom scratch that dream off her bucket list.  You see, a year before we took this trip, my mom was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. To say that life threw her a curveball would be an understatement. Chemotherapy treatments, radiation and various doctors’ appointments became a norm in her life that I never wanted her to have.  Up until about a week before our trip, she was apprehensive about going because she wasn’t sure how her body would react to the flight.

Chemotherapy often makes you very nauseous, and she did not want to be a burden to anybody on the plane. On the morning that we were scheduled to leave, she put all her discouragements to the side, packed her suitcase and prepared herself for her journey.
On the flight to NYC! She did not feel nauseous once, yay! Read More