Overdue

This post is long overdue. And the end of 2017 is long overdue, since we're being honest. But I'm also a storyteller, so I'm not going to say anything dumb like, "2018 has got to be better than 2017" because that is tantamount to the hero's best friend in any movie saying, "It'll be okay" right before they need to do the thing that needs to go off without a hitch. Yeah, that never works out so well. I will say, though, I'm looking forward to 2018.

On to important things...an update on Joella...

A couple of weeks ago (see? overdue) Joella had her first CT scan following treatment. The good news: it matched the scan right before her treatment, which means there are no visual indications of cancer. She has an appointment with her primary oncologist in a couple of weeks (about a week before her 45th birthday), and they will determine what types of scans and how often those scans will be for the future. Our medical goal now is that every scan for the next three years comes back as "negative." Three years of negative scans = remission.

This is definitely good news.

At the moment, there are no plans for any further treatment. A few people have asked me about radiation treatment for Joella, but radiation targets a specific area. And while the doctors could target her throat area (where the cancer was initially found on the back of her tongue), mucosal melanoma is a pesky villain and could have jumped somewhere else (and was summarily tracked down by the bio-chemotherapy treatment she just endured), so radiation is more than likely not going to be effective in any way. We have opted to forego it...Joella's had enough side effects.

As far as the doctors can tell, the surgery and the bio-chemotherapy treatment have done the deed, plus all of the prayers you all have offered on Joella's behalf. We are incredibly thankful for all of you and the support you have given us over the past seven months. (I know. Seven months. We found about Joella's cancer on May 23, 2017.) And as you can hopefully tell from the pic above, Joella is looking good and feeling much better. Her energy levels are returning. Her hair? Not so much...but it'll get there.

So for 2017, my All-Around Superhero Award goes to: Joella Michael. Wife, mother, sister, daughter, and cancer fighter. When Joella was in the hospital for her third round of treatment, nurses would see her and chat with her. "You're back. Round two?"

"No. Round three."

"Three?" Uncomfortable pause... "Most people stop after two because the effects are so bad."

...yeah, that's my wife. Three full rounds of treatment with medicine that's probably outlawed as a biological weapon somewhere. And she kicked it in the teeth. It knocked her down, yes, but she didn't stay down. And Joella would be quick to add that prayers and faith kept her going. So all of you reading this get the Superhero Sidekick Award for 2017. Without your help, your encouragement, your notes, your everything, Joella wouldn't have been able to get through the battle. Thank you.

And last, I would be remiss if I didn't publicly and profusely thank Joella's parents--Jerry and Kay--for spending ten weeks here helping us. There would have literally been no way we could have done it without them. They packed up a couple of suitcases and moved to California for the duration of Joella's treatment. Once here, they helped without complaint. Battled LA traffic and won (and when you live in Abilene, Texas, where rush hour lasts all of five minutes, LA traffic is no small feat). Played taxi for our girls. Helped us with errands and keeping the house clean. Made sure everyone was eating. Made sure Joella was taking her medicine (and if Joella has to take a single pill in 2018, it'll be too soon as far as Joella is concerned). Loved on us. And were all around encouragers even as they were having to watch their daughter wrestle with a disease that by all accounts she wasn't even statistically supposed to have. They are truly awesome, so if you know them and see them, give them a hug from us.

So at a quick glance, 2017 was not a great year. And yet, here at the end, we are, oddly, thankful for the lessons we have learned because of Joella's cancer. (Cancer. I still hate even saying that word.) We have learned to be more thankful for what we have. To force pride to a backseat and let others help and use the gifts they have been given. We have learned to enjoy the moments of life...all of them: sunsets, sunrises, and life all around us; medicine and medical advancements; food that tastes wonderful when everything seemingly doesn't sound good; technology for medicine, for apps (like Waze!! holy cow is that great when you have to drive 100 miles to a hospital through LA), for transportation, and even for blogs like this to communicate with people far away so they don't feel so far away; friends, comrades in arms, and family, who all do unexpected things at just the right time; and yes, for God, one who gives and takes away, one who sets us on mountain tops but walks with us through valleys, and one who is healer. One of my favorite names of God's is Jehovah Jireh, one who provides. And he has provided this year. Over. And over. And over. He has given exactly what we needed when we needed it. ...so many reasons to be thankful.

If there are any other significant developments on the Joella non-cancer front, I'll post them here. Until then, Happy New Year. May your 2018 be blessed, and...

"The Lord bless you, and keep you;

The Lord make His face shine on you,

And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up his countenance on you,

And give you peace."

- Numbers 6:24-26