Sat, 22 Jan 2005

2 and a half

"More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of."
- Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Hey. It's been a tiring few days but wanted to at least update you. Jade went in on Fri and had another two and a half liters drained off his abdomen. That makes five and a half on Tues and two and a half on Fri. As I said in the last email, he has a standing appt every Tues and Fri now to be drained. We don't go for our regular oncology appt until Fri the 28th.

He's doing ok but not really great. He seems to change hour to hour. He dozes a lot during the day and sometimes sleeps ok during the night but he's up a lot trying to get comfortable and regulate his body temperature.

It's been an intense rollar coaster ride this week emotionally. So difficult to sit and watch and feel helpless.

"My soul is a broken field, plowed by pain." - Sara Teasdale

I real this quote followed by the following explanation and thought of how many people this applies to. Whether we deal with physical, mental or emotional pain - - it touches us all. I read the other day in the paper that cancer is now the number one killer of individuals under 85 yrs of age. It seemed like they said one in two men and one in three women will have to personally deal with cancer. Whether it's cancer or some other issue in life, pain affects all of us. As my cousin and I discussed, some things are universally personal.

"When we don't prune in the garden, Nature does it for us through wind, ice, hail, fire and flood. One way or another, the boughs will be shaped and strengthened. If we don't prune away the stress and plow under the useless in our lives, pain will do it for us. Make no mistake, I think pain is a wretched gardener. Her cuts stun and sting. But after pruning, perferably voluntary, we're able to discern what's real, what's important, and what's essential for our happiness." - Sarah Ban Breathnach

So, (sigh), who knows where this journey will twist and turn this week. We're trying to stay positive, focused and keep some courage, hope and faith. We'll keep you posted and thank you again for your friendship. Jade and I have the best friends and family of anyone we know. Thank you. Take care and we'll talk to ya in a couple days..........................

Love (and wrapped in a fleece blanket) ............................Tanya and co.