This month’s edition of ‘Northern Lights’ marks the 50th column I have written for The Beacon.

Becoming a column writer at the age of 60 more than four years ago makes me a ‘late bloomer’, and it has been a source of great satisfaction to me.

Over the last four years of reading and writing at the Beacon, I have gained a lot of insight and knowledge from the comments left on my columns and from the columns of the other contributors.

To me, writing a column is a window on the world of this rare disease. It is unlikely that I could have taken part in so many discussions and learned so much about myeloma in my local area.

We all share the good and not-so good news in dealing with multiple myeloma, which I think is so edu­ca­tion­al. The good news is that there are newer, better treatments available for myeloma than ever before. The hardest part for me in dealing with my myeloma is the ongoing worry that the disease may flare up again and I will be in another dogfight for survival. In addition, the melancholy caused by losing friends to myeloma is disheartening. Along with the rest of us, I have mourned the loss of fellow columnists Arnold Goodman ^[1], Stephen Kramer ^[2], and Pat Killingsworth ^[3] over the years.

As I think back and take stock of all the columns I wrote, I realize that I have covered a wide array of topics.

Of course, the treatments I received – induction therapy, auto stem cell transplant, and further treatments with Revlimid ^[4] (lenalidomide) right after the transplant and when I relapsed after a 3.5-year “treatment vacation” – and the side effects of treatment have provided me with plenty of material to write about.

I also wrote about related topics, such as blood donations ^[5], reading one’s blood tests ^[6], environmental causes ^[7] of myeloma, gifts ^[8] for myeloma patients and caregivers, and fashion ^[9] for myeloma patients.

I realized over the years that wellness plays a significant part in living with multiple myeloma, so I covered topics such as music ^[10], yoga ^[11], nutrition ^[12], exercising ^[13], and decreasing stress in one’s life ^[14].

I like to read also and enjoy the poetry posted by the other columnists and readers, so I have written about 'Summer Reading ^[15],'and my interpretations of the classic novel 'Don Quixote ^[16]' and the poem 'Shall I Wear Purple ^[17]?.'

Other topics I covered included caregiving ^[18], volunteering ^[19], friendship ^[20], and pacing oneself ^[21].

Some of my favorite columns were:

Losing My Hair ^[22] (June 2012)

I wrote about my temporary baldness after having an autologous stem cell transplant, wearing a wig, and my realization that losing my hair had been sung about in the Beatles song ‘When I’m 64’.

Weather Report - Fog and Freezing Rain ^[23] (September 2012)

The chemo brain that I suffered after the stem cell transplant was real, and I had to develop strategies to combat it.

Watching The Detectives ^[6] (March 2013)

I have learned a lot about blood testing since my multiple myeloma diagnosis. Every month, my blood is scanned for many markers, including monoclonal protein and serum free light chains. If one little item is not in normal range, we will soon know about that! It was a learning process to be able to scan test results.

Meeting The Enemy ^[24] (January 2014)

A visit to a research lab enabled me to look into a microscope and actually see myeloma cells. The cell nuclei were stained and they were in cross section. My nemesis! I also saw how a DNA sequencer works.

These Boots Are Made for Walking ^[25] (October 2015)

Exercising has been an important part of my recovery and ongoing lifestyle. I really think that walking and other exercise have helped me in coping with the myeloma treatments.

Columns that were particularly popular among the Beacon's readers included:

Late Frost In The Foothills ^[26] (February 2012)

This was my first column for the Beacon, and I received a really warm welcome from readers, which I really appreciated. I described how playing with my pipe band, hiking, and lifting heavy pots while gardening led to vertebral fractures, which eventually led to my myeloma diagnosis.

Reaching The Five-Year Milestone ^[27] (July 2014)

For any cancer patient, surviving for five years is a milestone. As you can imagine, I was very grateful to have reached that milestone, and thankful for all of the good care I received.

Rip Currents ^[28] (November 2014)

After starting back on treatments due to a relapse, I noticed that the Revlimid was making me tired, and dexamethasone was causing hyperactivity. This pull in two different directions reminded me of the rip currents seen at ocean beaches. You don’t want to be swimming in a rip current though!

Traveling While Receiving Treatment For Multiple Myeloma ^[29] (January 2015)

I wrote about the precautions I took for a trip to Hawaii after I had restarted treatment. Readers shared their strategies for travelling while on treatment.

Being A Myeloma Patient Is A Part-Time Job ^[30] (June 2015)

Between going for blood tests, appointments, and dealing with side effects, having myeloma feels like a part time (unpaid!) job to me. Add to that the need to learn more about the disease, study about the new treatments, and be involved in my support group, and a fair amount of my time is taken up with myeloma-related matters.

Passing The Six-Year Milestone ^[31] (July 2015)

I was fortunate to reach another year of survival and could look back on a good year in my personal life. The marriage of our older daughter, and becoming a grandmother, were tops on my list of happy events. I passed through the six-year milestone in a cheerful mood.

Overall, I have learned so much over the past years by sharing my experiences and reading about those of other patients. I’m glad I have found a home here as a column writer.

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The quotation for this month is from by Paulo Coelho (1947 - ), a Brazilian novelist, who said: "Writing means sharing. It's part of the human condition to want to share things - thoughts, ideas, opinions."