The other day, I came to the realization that I probably feel better than I have in a long time. I still go through the flu like symptoms that you get with chemo, but generally I feel great.
This all started as I got ready to get on the plane to move to Arizona; I had the misfortune of spraining my knee. For the next several months, I limped around like an old man. Shortly there after, I pulled a muscle in my arm carrying one of my 50 pound luggage bags after one of my return flights from Columbus. (just trying to save a few moving bucks.) That took even longer to get better.
Then, it seemed like my entire upper body was always sore. Nothing in particular, but just soar. I couldn’t lay in bed without hurting somewhere. I just wasn’t healing as fast as I used to and it just stunk. Then Christmas rolled around and my back started killing me. I thought moving to Arizona and getting out of the cold was supposed to make life so much easier. Everything wasn’t bad though as there are a lot more women in short shorts and halter tops, but the aches and pains made me forget why I found that enjoyable. I finally came to the conclusion that I was getting old. I really didn’t like the idea at all.
Then all of a sudden I find out that I have cancer and everything that wasn’t hurting before started hurting. Not sure if it was real or not, but I quickly went from being 56 to 76.
To top things off, I then had to start taking chemotherapy. Now there is a joy. First they stick you with a big old needle and they put some kind of poison into your body. Sounds like a party to me.
However, slowly be surely, some of the aches and pains started to go away. First, I noticed that my back was feeling better. Then the arm stopped hurting. Then the upper body ache went away. Finally after the first round of chemo, I stopped being completely wiped out. Geez, I actually stated feeling like my old self. I could joke around again. I know how everybody misses that.
Chemo is like the new kid at the high school. Nobody really knows them and as a result, bad things are said about them. You don’t even want to talk to them because you have heard so many bad things. Then all of a sudden you get stuck on a project with them and you have to talk to them. After a couple of weeks, you find out that they are not so bad after all and you become friends.
I know that chemo can be very difficult to tolerate. It can be painful and life threatening. But it isn’t always the “bad” new kid. Sometimes it can become your new best friend. I spoke to another chemo recipient the other day and the size of the tumor in his lung has shrunk from three inches to one inch after just two sessions and several smaller tumors have disappeared. The stuff can work. It has become one of my new best friends. Not somebody I would fix a friend up with, but still somebody I would hang around with under the right circumstances. It’s working and I feel great! It would be nice if it worked for everybody.
By the way, I have had a couple people mention to me that they get nervous when I don’t post something for a few days. Please don’t worry. If I don’t have something brilliant to say, I doubt that I will put it down. Now Julia might disagree that I have anything brilliant to say at all, but that is an ongoing discussion. As I told her today, the Pope wouldn’t have asked Michelangelo to doodle at the Sistene Chapel on his off days. For whatever reason she found no correlation.
You have to understand, when he says he has nothing to say, it isn't that he isn't saying something, trust me, he is. He just isn't feeling creative or energetic enough to put it to keyboard. He always has plenty to say, so don't be afraid to pick up a phone and give him a little grief now and then!
ReplyDeleteI think that's what he thrives on most is the frequent calls and emails from various friends who love to razz him about one of his favorite teams or his whining or just razz him for razzingsake. He's such an easy target, isn't he. For any of you who don't have our home number, it's 480.264.4284.