Hope you guys love this one. It’s adapted from my essay that originally appeared in the Washington Post.

It’s now been more than 20 years since I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Even after all this time, the week in January I always get all my follow-up testing can (still!) be a stressful waiting game. Sharing this piece again today feels like a nice way of celebrating another year of normal labs!

PS, the photos throughout are all my own. —XO/A

“We aren’t sleeping well; our cots are rock-hard and I’m pretty sure they’ve been in service at this convent since the First World War. The nuns, bless them, think we are lunatics. They are right.”