X is the freakin' hardest letter to write about for Alphabytes! There just aren't that many words starting with "x" that pertain to my life and/or what I want to talk about. The one that does come to mind repeatedly (and, I might add, predictably) is x-ray.

X-rays actually are a big deal for two people in my life right now. My mom, and another friend of mine (let's call her Xena for the purposes of sticking with the "X" theme... oh and for the purposes of protecting her anonymity, too... heh). At about the same time, Mom and Xena both got x-rays. Mom's was to check on a pain in her leg. Xena's was a cat scan, a followup test for the cancer she beat last year.

Mom's and Xena's tests both came back with strange splotches. Mom's turned out to be degeneration of the cartilage in her ankle. We don't know what's going on with Xena yet.

I'm extremely grateful my mom's condition isn't more serious. At the same time, I'm a little freaked that her joints are wearing away. She's got some appointments lined up to see why this is happening so much (she just had surgery to replace the cartilage in her thumb joint when it wore away), and to see how to slow down the arthritic degeneration of her cartilage or stop it altogether.

With Xena, we're just waiting to find out what other tests she needs, and maybe those will tell us what's going on with her body.

It's amazing how x-rays can change lives. Sometimes they bring good news, and sometimes they bring scary news. But they bring news, and having the information means being able to know where to go from here. And that, at least, is something.

Send good juju to Mom and Xena, if you're into that kind of thing. Thank you!