Good News!

Sunday was as most Sundays are in the midst of the pandemic, a quiet day. The morning was spent in church and the afternoon attending other services via YouTube. Most days it does not seem that there is a good side to the pandemic. As a church music “junkie” and a liturgical “snob,” the ability to “attend” services in other places is truly a blessing. I can even go to church in England on Sunday afternoon and skip boarding a plane and the hours in flight! ¶ Monday seemed a long, long day. At least it felt that way when most of it was spent waiting for something to happen. The appointed CT scan was scheduled for arrival at 7:30. That is 7:30 in the AM! This is always preceded with two bottles of water, laced with something mild tasting. My port had to be accessed. Before that there is always the search for povidone-iodine which is used to cleanse the port site because I am allergic to the standard chloroprep. At the Imaging Center this seems to be a major issue. There is never any of the aforementioned in the cubicle in which the nurse operates. So she/he must institute a search for said substance.

¶ Finally, one is ushered into the CT scan room. It only takes a few minutes and freedom is regained. Then I had a few hours off until the appointment with the doctor. The scan revealed that there are no new lesions in my lungs, liver or any other portion of my anatomy. The lesions that were present seem to have died. This means the cancer is mainly active in my brain right now. I will need to continue the chemotherapy because I am treatable but not curable. The oncologist was amazed that I’ve been on the same chemo for two years and it is, obviously, still working. He said that is not usually the case. ¶ However, my platelets were low in my last labs which were drawn before the MRI last week. Unfortunately too low for chemo to begin. So it was down to the lab for another blood draw and then the wait for the processing. The platelet count was back up so chemo could proceed. Of course, the pharmacy had to be notified and then the wait for the medicine began. I finally got out of the cancer center a bit after 5 PM. I’m grateful for the news, tired because of the wait. ¶ The other four days went like a flash. Medicine was johnny-on-the-spot, the staff was efficient and I was pleased. ¶ One of the members of my Benedictine Community professed his first vows Tuesday evening. We hosted a few guests, including our Bishop. It was very nice that he could be present. I don’t think that I’ve preached before him previously. ¶ The weather has been weird, even for South Dakota. It was 55º in the middle of the week, then in the negative range for a couple of days. This is the reason we who live here must have a vast variety of outerwear to accommodate temperature swings. It is sometimes necessary to alter one’s clothing a couple of times per day.

¶ Sophia continues her heightened degree of interest in the livestock on the deck. A beautiful cardinal joins us for a snack at least once each day. Multiple squirrels eat peanuts by the pound and some corn. I think the corn is more work than the peanuts so the easy way is sought. All of this observation of the local wildlife is tiring beyond words. Inevitably a nap must be taken. ¶ Herself was exceedingly happy that the Amazon delivery came. It’s always good to know that there are foodstuffs in the larder. ¶ Thanks for your thoughts and prayers. I’m grateful for what you do for me and for others.