YES you read the title right! I know today is THANKSGIVING but if you think about things, we should be LIVING thankfully! I'll go into some details in a moment. In the meantime, HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all of you who have read my posts for the last 10 months, and to all my friends and family who have been reading as well.
As I said when I 1st started writing these blogs, I have found it very therapeutic and a way of keeping everyone updated on my health and status of this illness. Well the illness is gone, and of course Im extremely thankful for that.
OK WHY THANKS-LIVING. This is a term I heard some years ago from a Pastor during a sermon. It sounded strange then, probably because I was a teenager, yes I can remember that long ago. LOL (Cant remember what happened yesterday sometimes, but yeah years ago is like a brilliant light.
I never really paid much attention to living the THANKS-LIVING way, until this year. Oh Ive always been thankful for the life I had. I've never been rich, but I've always had plenty. Ive been blessed with an incredible daughter and a wonderful wife. Ive been blessed with a business that has provided when I needed it the most. So why did not live the THANKS-LIVING way? I guess because even though I was thankful, I just did not tell people about it.
You can translate the term THANKS-LIVING to THANKFUL LIVING. Giving thanks everyday for life, for waking up on the green side of the grass, for what you have, and even what you dont have. Yes I said that right, give thanks for what you DONT have. If you dont have it, perhaps, even though, you might want it, you really dont NEED it. I might WANT a lot of money, it would sure make things easier at time, but I really dont NEED it. I might want a new SUV or a CORVETTE, but I dont NEED either one. (Corvette is really just a dream.) Ive owned an SUV, nice but horrible gas mileage.
So this year has been WAAAAAY different than any Ive experienced. If you have been following this blog at all you know what Ive gone thru with the cancer thing and treatments and Gods healing. If you have not been following, shame on you!! LOL, actually you can go and read all of them. Im so very thankful that God chose me to heal. WHY? I really dont have an answer to that question. I just know that from the moment of the real diagnosis, I never one time doubted that God would do it. That brings me to the word FAITH. Im very thankful for FAITH. Without it no doubt, I would still be dealing with a disease that has some many complications and ill effects, I would probably be wanting to die. As it is, Im LIVING THANKFULLY!
Ive had the opportunity over the last few months to make contact with others who have had cancer. Ive met others who have had family members with the disease. Ive been able to talk to these people and connect on a level that I never would have, had I not had cancer. Ive been able to relate, somewhat, with their treatments, though NOT ALL cancer receives the same treatment. We've compared scars where we had ports, (I still have mine, kinda like it, makes drawing blood quite easy and painless). We talked about different doctors, even discovered that a couple of us had the same doctor or received treatments at the same place, and even at the same time, though we had never met. Ive had the opportunity to talk face to face with people who are angry because they feel that this disease "destroyed" their life. NOT TRUE is what I told them. They still have life. YES they might have scars, or need some reconstruction, but they are still ALIVE. They can still walk and talk and function pretty much normally. SCARS are totally OK. No need to hide them.
Im thankful that as recently as July and August, I could hardly walk thru SAMS or COSTCO, in fact I resorted to using the little motorized cart. Just absolutely did not have the strength. NOW Im able to ride my bike again, miles and miles. Im able to workout at the Y. Im able to take cycling classes at the Y. Im able to hike thru the woods and climb hills and walk up steps. So you see, I very thankful for the ability to do this. God really kinda knew what HE was doing when he made the human body. Its able to recover from almost total destruction, and come back and function. Chemo and radiation pretty much destroy everything it touches, which is what it is supposed to do, it destroys the cancer cells and unfortunately everything else around them. :)
Im thankful for the friends I have at church and literally around this country and around the world, who so faithfully prayed for my healing. IT WORKED!! Most of these people have never met me, yet they prayed because they were asked to. Pretty amazing.
Im thankful for excellent health that I have right now. So many that have gone thru treatments, are still struggling with theirs, Ive only got to deal with a dry mouth, and that is nothing compared to so many others. So YES Im even thankful for the dry mouth.
Im thankful for taste. I had the opportunity the other night to chat with a friend who reminded me of his mother who in the 60's had a tumor removed from the back of her tongue and lost all of her taste. She went on to live almost 40 more years with NO taste. I can only imagine how awful that would be. I lost my taste for a couple of months, I would not want to go thru the rest of my life without it. God did indeed have mercy on me. I cant imagine having to eat really good food without being able to taste it. UGH! :(
Im thankful for a VOICE. I have a voice. There was a good chance, had the doctors had their way, I would not have a voice. Sometimes it is a bit raspy, sometimes it is clear, but ALL the time it is VERY low. :) Ive always loved to sing, and Ive always been able to sing Tenor AND Bass, now it is strictly bass. A very low bass. Kind of a J.D. Sumner bass. (Google his name if you dont know who he is). But you know, I have a voice, and its fun singing, and speaking in that very low tone of a Barry White style. :)
In short, Im LIVING THANKFULLY! Think about your life and just imagine if you did not have what you have and then be thankful. Today is a day of giving thanks. Make everyday a day of giving thanks. Make it a day of THANKS-LIVING!
Stories about life in general, politics, where I have been, where Im going, what I like to do.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Sunday, November 4, 2012
LIFE AT 61 - THANKSGIVING
I know that it is not quite Thanksgiving just yet, but I thought I would write about some things Im thankful for. This has been quite the year! I guess that is putting it mildly for those of you who have been following my journey, but yes interesting is a good way of putting it.
This journey as most of you know, started shortly after the 1st of the year, so really its going on 11 months. WOW how time has flown by. I wont be mentioning any real names with probably the exception of my immediate family. I dont have permission to mention names of people and without that it would not be right.
Im thankful first and foremost for the healing that I have been given. I know that the Dr's would love to take all the credit, and honestly they probably do deserve some, but I know that God was the one who created the healing in my body and that is something I will be forever grateful for. Im also thankful for my family. My wife Renita, and my daughter Renita Michelle, and her husband Stephen. Without the support that I have received from them, this journey would have quite likely been very dismal. In fact, Im not sure I would have been able to make it, and not sure I would have wanted to. I have made some new friends along the way.
Im very thankful for friends, both old and new. Here are a few that I wanted to mention.
One of the friends is my friend's mother. S's mother, P, had a very serious cancer in her mouth. This woman is in her 70's and just as spry and alert as can be. Yet she has gone thru literal hell with her treatments. She did the same radiation treatment I did, 35 treatments to her head and neck area. HOWVER she also had some radical surgery on her mouth area. Yet thru all of this she is still upbeat, and raring to go. How wonderful to have a friend like this. Her daughter and son inlaw, (though a bit on the crazy side of life), are awesome friends to have as well. They came to the hospital to greet me on my final day of radiation. How awesome to have friends like that. THANKS guys!
I have another friend, D, who has followed my blog, and we have gone bike riding together. She just recently lost her father to this horrible disease. It was all very fast and sudden, yet he was strong for his family to the very end. How awesome that the family had him for many years and he was there for them as they were for him. Im very thankful for friends like D. She has been an encourager, even thru the pain she was going thru. THANKS for being and encourager
Ive made some new friends thru the Y, and the LIVESTRONG class that I have been taking. For those of you who dont know what that is, it is a class sponsored by the LIVESTRONG foundation thru the YMCA and it is helping get the cancer patients and survivors and their caregivers back in shape. AWESOME program.
To start, I have 2 trainers, they are incredible. Im very thankful for both of them. Incredible trainers, and they care about each of us in the class and they are both encouragers. THANKS to both of them for caring and working with us.
One of my new friends, S, had Lymphoma in her throat. Not quite what I had, but very serious. She is a survivor as well. Awesome person and upbeat, and refuses to let this thing beat her. THANKS for offering to come back after your classes were done, and coming to this class to encourage all of us.
T. is another one of the women in the class who has gone thru the cancer treatments for breast cancer. She, along with me, rode her bike in the Pedal the cause bike ride. THAT is awesome. It was miserable that day, but she rode thru it and finished her ride. AWESOME
Im thankful for all these new friends. All of them are encouragers, survivors, and are strong people. THAT is incredible to have friends like that. Im sure that these friendships will last for a good long time.
Im thankful for my old friends. Friends I have known for many years, some that I have stayed in contact with for a long time, and others that I just renewed friendship with recently on of all things FACEBOOK!!! LOL Some high school friends, some church friends, and other friends that we just seem to have been together for years. The concern, prayers, words of hope and cheer, that is awesomeness! Im thankful for my friends at church. These people have been praying for me since this all started. They are still praying for me, I know because they let me know from time to time. I KNOW I would not be where I am were it not for the prayers given up by these people. Some of these people do not even know me personally, they just have been praying for me because they were asked to. My church here in St. Louis and all the prayer groups in it. THANKS is not enough to say.
Lastly, there are people around the world, some that I know, most that I dont, who have been praying for me since this all started. Im so very thankful them them as well. I have friends around this great country from west to east and from north to south, that have been praying, and I cant begin to name them all, but they know who they are and Im so thankful for them as well. Churches around the world that have prayed. It is so incredible.
As you think about this time of year contemplating what you might be thankful for, remember that we still live in the greatest country in the world. Remember that you still have the right to vote, whether it is for the Republicans or Democrats, or Independents. EXERCISE that right. Be thankful that you can still do that. Be thankful for what you have, not down about what you dont have. Enjoy the time you have with family and friends.
This journey as most of you know, started shortly after the 1st of the year, so really its going on 11 months. WOW how time has flown by. I wont be mentioning any real names with probably the exception of my immediate family. I dont have permission to mention names of people and without that it would not be right.
Im thankful first and foremost for the healing that I have been given. I know that the Dr's would love to take all the credit, and honestly they probably do deserve some, but I know that God was the one who created the healing in my body and that is something I will be forever grateful for. Im also thankful for my family. My wife Renita, and my daughter Renita Michelle, and her husband Stephen. Without the support that I have received from them, this journey would have quite likely been very dismal. In fact, Im not sure I would have been able to make it, and not sure I would have wanted to. I have made some new friends along the way.
Im very thankful for friends, both old and new. Here are a few that I wanted to mention.
One of the friends is my friend's mother. S's mother, P, had a very serious cancer in her mouth. This woman is in her 70's and just as spry and alert as can be. Yet she has gone thru literal hell with her treatments. She did the same radiation treatment I did, 35 treatments to her head and neck area. HOWVER she also had some radical surgery on her mouth area. Yet thru all of this she is still upbeat, and raring to go. How wonderful to have a friend like this. Her daughter and son inlaw, (though a bit on the crazy side of life), are awesome friends to have as well. They came to the hospital to greet me on my final day of radiation. How awesome to have friends like that. THANKS guys!
I have another friend, D, who has followed my blog, and we have gone bike riding together. She just recently lost her father to this horrible disease. It was all very fast and sudden, yet he was strong for his family to the very end. How awesome that the family had him for many years and he was there for them as they were for him. Im very thankful for friends like D. She has been an encourager, even thru the pain she was going thru. THANKS for being and encourager
Ive made some new friends thru the Y, and the LIVESTRONG class that I have been taking. For those of you who dont know what that is, it is a class sponsored by the LIVESTRONG foundation thru the YMCA and it is helping get the cancer patients and survivors and their caregivers back in shape. AWESOME program.
To start, I have 2 trainers, they are incredible. Im very thankful for both of them. Incredible trainers, and they care about each of us in the class and they are both encouragers. THANKS to both of them for caring and working with us.
One of my new friends, S, had Lymphoma in her throat. Not quite what I had, but very serious. She is a survivor as well. Awesome person and upbeat, and refuses to let this thing beat her. THANKS for offering to come back after your classes were done, and coming to this class to encourage all of us.
T. is another one of the women in the class who has gone thru the cancer treatments for breast cancer. She, along with me, rode her bike in the Pedal the cause bike ride. THAT is awesome. It was miserable that day, but she rode thru it and finished her ride. AWESOME
Im thankful for all these new friends. All of them are encouragers, survivors, and are strong people. THAT is incredible to have friends like that. Im sure that these friendships will last for a good long time.
Im thankful for my old friends. Friends I have known for many years, some that I have stayed in contact with for a long time, and others that I just renewed friendship with recently on of all things FACEBOOK!!! LOL Some high school friends, some church friends, and other friends that we just seem to have been together for years. The concern, prayers, words of hope and cheer, that is awesomeness! Im thankful for my friends at church. These people have been praying for me since this all started. They are still praying for me, I know because they let me know from time to time. I KNOW I would not be where I am were it not for the prayers given up by these people. Some of these people do not even know me personally, they just have been praying for me because they were asked to. My church here in St. Louis and all the prayer groups in it. THANKS is not enough to say.
Lastly, there are people around the world, some that I know, most that I dont, who have been praying for me since this all started. Im so very thankful them them as well. I have friends around this great country from west to east and from north to south, that have been praying, and I cant begin to name them all, but they know who they are and Im so thankful for them as well. Churches around the world that have prayed. It is so incredible.
As you think about this time of year contemplating what you might be thankful for, remember that we still live in the greatest country in the world. Remember that you still have the right to vote, whether it is for the Republicans or Democrats, or Independents. EXERCISE that right. Be thankful that you can still do that. Be thankful for what you have, not down about what you dont have. Enjoy the time you have with family and friends.
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