WimsReport – May 24, 2008

Good evening family and friends.  I just left Paul at the hospital.  He came home on Tuesday night after a five-day stay for his chemo.  He’s not been feeling well, but not worse then we were prepared for.  Yesterday we met with his oncologist, Paul had bloodwork done, and we found out his white blood count was extremely low.  He was told that he was very susceptible to infection at this point.  Today he didn’t feel good.  His temp was just barely above normal for most of the day.  Tonight it was 101.8 degrees.  I knew what that meant…a call to the doctor.  Sure enough, he said to bring him right in, he even made sure Paul had a room ready ahead of time.  Avoiding the emergency room was a blessing.  Labwork was done right away and his white blood count is even lower now.  He’s on two hefty antibiotics and is getting hydrated.  I can’t tell you how disappointed Paul was to have to go back in.  But his body has no way of fighting whatever is going on right now.  And finding that out may take up to three days.  He was just about asleep when I left him.

Please pray as we come to mind.  We know that nothing that happens takes God by surprise, even if it seems overwhelming to us.  And we know that Paul is in very good hands…God’s.  He is our Helper, our Guide, our Strength, our Hope, our Anchor.  So we are leaning, and leaning hard on Him.  I’m again reminded of one of my favorite Psalms—

Psalm 121:1-8   I LIFT UP MY EYES TO THE HILLS—WHERE DOES MY HELP COME FROM?  MY HELP COMES FROM THE LORD, THE MAKER OF HEAVEN AND EARTH.  HE WILL NOT LET YOUR FOOT SLIP—HE WHO WATCHES OVER YOU WILL NOT SLUMBER; INDEED, HE WHO WATCHES OVER ISRAEL WILL NEITHER SLUMBER NOR SLEEP.  THE LORD WATCHES OVER YOU—THE LORD IS YOUR SHADE AT YOUR RIGHT HAND; THE SUN WILL NOT HARM YOU BY DAY, NOR THE MOON BY NIGHT.  THE LORD WILL KEEP YOU FROM ALL HARM—HE WILL WATCH OVER YOUR LIFE; THE LORD WILL WATCH OVER YOUR COMING AND GOING BOTH NOW AND FOREVERMORE.

I know that my dear hubby is being watched over by the very Maker of heaven and earth.  How awesome is that?  And now I say goodnight.

Diana

 

May 15, 2008

Good evening.  Paul was able to go to work all five days last week.  He played his first full round of golf on Saturday.  And he mowed and edged his own lawn over the weekend.  He’s tasted things getting back to normal, his new normal…just in time for the regimen to begin once again.

I just left Paul at the hospital a little while ago.  He’s being hydrated and prepared for his next bout of chemo, which will start tomorrow morning.  It’s a combination of three different drugs, given continuously over four days.  This first time it’s being done in the hospital so they can see how he does with it.  The hope is that future treatments will be done as an outpatient, using a pump.  It is an aggressive combo, and as I mentioned in the last blog, going after any cancer cells that may be present, though unseen.  We’re as ready as you can be.  He’s been told that this will be tougher on him then the last time.  Though before he was doing radiation at the same time, and that knocked him flat.  This will be chemo only.  Fatigue, pain in joints/limbs/fingers, nausea…and, more than likely, hair loss this time.  Paul has a good attitude and just wants to get this behind him. 

My friend, Candy, sent me a book she’d written called 101 WAYS TO ENJOY GOD.  The verse she includes at the very beginning is from The Message Bible—

Hebrews 11:1   THE FUNDAMENTAL FACT OF EXISTENCE IS THAT THIS TRUST IN GOD, THIS FAITH, IS THE FIRM FOUNDATION UNDER EVERYTHING THAT MAKES LIFE WORTH LIVING.  IT’S OUR HANDLE ON WHAT WE CAN’T SEE.

I say AMEN to that.  It is the one thing that makes sense to me.  We’re holding onto God with all that is in us.  He is our anchor…and we are safe in His care.  We place all of our concerns, fears, what ifs…in His hands, and leave them there, one day at a time.  TRUSTING, HOPING, RESTING, BELIEVING.

Thank you for your prayers.  Goodnight.

Diana

May 7, 2008

Good afternoon.  I’ve been meaning to update this blog since last week.  We started the morning of April 30th at St. Joe’s…Paul had his chest drained in an area accumulating fluid near the right lung.  We left the hospital and went to see Dr. K.  He took out Paul’s feeding tube (Paul says YEAH!) and took off the neck wound dressing.  The wound looked good and no longer requires the dressing.  After talking to Paul, Dr. K ordered a Barium Swallow to see why he was having trouble swallowing food and liquids.  

The following morning Paul had his test at St. Joe’s.  It showed that there was a constriction in the neck connection.  He was then scheduled for an endoscopy dialation the next day, May 2nd. 

While the endoscopy was being done, the scope was taken all the way down through his stomach, duodenum, and into the jujunem.  The constriction looked like scar tissue, and the rest of the tissue they viewed looked good.  No cancer seen.  We left the clinic and went for lunch.  It was much easier for Paul to eat and drink.  The procedure will be repeated on May 13 to stretch it out just a little more. 

Sunday Paul played his first seven holes of golf in over five months.  He birdied the first hole!  When you think of all his body has gone through, the fact that he was even able to play this soon is great.  The birdie made it just that much sweeter.  

Paul is going into work again!  Not full-time yet, but increasing the amount with each new week.  His stamina and energy level is improving as well.  All we can say is THANK YOU, LORD.  We continue to take it ONE DAY AT A TIME.

We met with Paul’s oncologist this morning.  Even though no cancer has been seen on the PET or CT scans, or on the endoscopy, both Dr. K and Dr. Yee want Paul to undergo another round of chemo…this time more aggressive.  The reason is to hit any cancer cells that may be unseen, though present.  So, Paul will start chemo on Thursday, May 15.  This first bout will be in the hospital, with a stay of about four days.  If all goes well, it will be repeated, as an outpatient, three weeks later.  Then we go from there.

From the very beginning we have placed this unexpected journey in God’s hands.  Our faith has been challenged and strengthened by Him.  When going through the storms of life you really find out what you believe.  TRUST…HOPE…REST—just a few of the words that have taken on new meaning for us.  He will continue to walk with us daily, and we will contiue to lean on Him.  Almost every day I read a Psalm.  As soon as I finish the 150th one, I start over.  What a source of ENCOURAGEMENT.  Here’s a passage from one I read this week—

Psalm 62:5-6, 8   FIND REST, O MY SOUL, IN GOD ALONE; MY HOPE COMES FROM HIM.  HE ALONE IS MY ROCK AND MY SALVATION; HE IS MY FORTRESS, I WILL NOT BE SHAKEN…TRUST IN HIM AT ALL TIMES, O PEOPLE; POUR OUT YOUR HEARTS TO HIM, FOR GOD IS OUR REFUGE.

Bless you, dear family and friends, for your concern, support, and prayers on our behalf.  We are grateful.

Diana

    

WimsReport – April 26, 2008

Good morning!  It’s sunny outside today, birds chattering, flowers lifting their heads upward…HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD!!!  Each day He communicates with all of His creation if we will but pause and LISTEN. 

Paul had his PET and CT scans on Thursday.  Friday morning his surgeon, Dr. K, called with the results.  Nothing on either scan shows that cancer has returned.  THANK YOU, LORD.  Dr. K asked Paul if he’d been short of breath and tiring easily, which he answered with a resounding YES!  The scan shows fluid in the lung/chest area, which is very normal following surgery.  It will be drained this Wednesday when we see Dr. K again.  He said that Paul will feel even better after that.  There is also an area of the neck that shows condensed tissue (my wording is not correct, I’m sure).  A neck CT has been ordered.  Dr. K thinks it is scar tissue or just fatty tissue (I can’t imagine a BIT of fat being found on Paul anywhere at the moment!).  We truly are thankful for these good reports.  We meet with the oncologist on May 7 to hear his recommendation concerning follow-up chemo. 

Our cousin, Linda, sent a card this week, a singing card actually, with these words on the front:   THERE ARE GREATER THINGS THAN YOU CAN  I M A G I N E  AHEAD OF YOU—AND THERE’S A GREAT GOD WALKING BESIDE YOU.  We do believe that.  The inside of the card includes this verse:

Ephesians 3:20 (The Message)   GOD CAN DO ANYTHING, YOU KNOW—FAR MORE THAN YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE OR GUESS OR REQUEST IN YOUR WILDEST DREAMS!

And the other side of the card says:  I KNOW HIS PURPOSE IS AT WORK WITHIN YOU, AS HE’S GUIDING YOUR LIFE WITH WISDOM AND LOVE.  We say AMEN and AMEN!  He has so faithfully encouraged us day after day.  One of the verses that’s meant so much to me during this journey, and it was my Psalm reading for yesterday, is—

Psalm 55:22   CAST YOUR CARES ON THE LORD AND HE WILL SUSTAIN YOU.

Another word for sustain is nourish.  The dictionary gives this definition for NOURISH—to provide with substances necessary to life and growth.  That says it all…as we place EVERY SINGLE CARE in His hands, He gives us what we need at the moment…and it’s LIFEGIVING.

Paul went to work Monday and Tuesday for about four hours each day.  He was pretty much wiped out after the second day, so he’s taken it easy the rest of the week.  But how exciting is that?!!?  He’s on his way back to work very soon.  He continues to walk almost every day.  And he’s eating well, and maintaining his weight.  Dr. K will remove his feeding tube Wednesday.  The neck wound is very small now.  I still change the dressing every day, and we’ve been able to discontinue the home health nurses’ visits.  Improvements across the board.  He has his challenges, and I don’t see that changing.  Really, who of us is without our challenges…and aren’t those the very things that sharpen, strengthen, and better define us?  And the humbling that takes place through the tough stuff, keeps us mindful of how fleeting life is for all of us…and grateful for each new day.

The same cousin that sent the card I referenced above sent a card with these classic words—WHAT MATTERS IS NOT THE SIZE OF THE MOUNTAIN…BUT THE STRENGTH OF THE MOUNTAIN MOVER.  And the verse with this one is:

Jeremiah 32:27   BEHOLD, I AM THE LORD…IS ANYTHING TOO DIFFICULT FOR ME?

So, I leave you with this thought—give those cares, those anxiety-producing fears, those disappointments, and the very areas that you can’t imagine God would want to help you with, and then TRUST HIM, SIMPLY TRUST, one day at a time.

THANK YOU for your prayers, time and time again.  Bless you.

Diana    

WimsReport – April 20, 2008

Good afternoon.  Paul’s sister, Eileen, from California, just left today after a five-day visit.  It was great to see her.  She arrived on Tuesday, and on our way home we took her to Anthony’s for dinner.  Paul’s first time to eat out in months!  And he enjoyed his clam chowder.

Paul continues to have good days followed by days where he just doesn’t feel well.  That is hard for him, as he is so very ready to get back to work, mow his own lawn, and start swinging a golf club.  We’ve been told that this is very normal.  He’s been through a major surgery and it’s just going to take awhile to recuperate.  Paul is learning how to eat correctly with his new stomophagus, and is finding he’s very uncomfortable if he eats too much.  A bread plate is about the perfect size for portion control.  PASTA, OMELETTES, POTATO-BROCCOLI CHEDDAR CHEESE SOUP, PANCAKES, TOAST…just a few of the things he’s craving.

We met with the oncologist this past Wednesday.  Our surgeon and the oncologist have talked, and want Paul to have a PET scan and CAT scan to determine what’s next.  Another round of chemo seems to be their recommendation.  And Paul and I are in prayer for God’s wisdom, and for continued healing of any microscopic cancer cells that might be floating around.  We do not know what God’s will is for the future, but we know that He does have a purpose and a plan.  His Word speaks to us of hope, of trusting, of His faithfulness and power, NO MATTER WHAT.  We are confident that He will lead and guide us as decisions are needed.

My friend, Sally, gave us a little book on Job (The Message version).  A few weeks ago I’d read a passage in Job out of my Bible.  Here is the same passage out of this book.

Job 42:2   I’M CONVINCED: YOU CAN DO ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING.  NOTHING AND NO ONE CAN UPSET YOUR PLANS.

Paul and I believe that with all of our hearts.  We are both spending time in prayer and Bible reading.  He has given us hope-filled passages over and over again.  Trusting when you can’t see ahead is hard.  But isn’t that what faith is?  I just looked up FAITH in the dictionary and here is the meaning—unquestioning belief, specifically in God; complete trust or confidence.  This makes me think of my all-time favorite verse again.

Proverbs 3:5-6   TRUST IN THE LORD WITH ALL YOUR HEART AND LEAN NOT ON YOUR OWN UNDERSTANDING; IN ALL YOUR WAYS ACKNOWLEDGE HIM, AND HE WILL MAKE YOUR PATHS STRAIGHT.

My prayer for you is that you would find Him to be trustworthy (worthy of trust; reliable). 

Have a blessed week.

Diana 

  

WimsReport – April 14, 2008

Good morning, family and friends. 

Psalm 118:24   THIS IS THE DAY THE LORD HAS MADE; LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD IN IT.

My Bible has notes for most verses down below each particular section.  For this verse it says—This day of rejoicing was made possible by God’s deliverance in the victory being celebrated.  So, I say with all my heart, LET US REJOICE!!!  For God has been good to us…I say US, as in ALL OF US!  We ALL have so much to be thankful for.  I think an assessment of God’s goodness is something that should be done daily.  I have a dear friend, Sylvia, that once shared that she thanks God for five things EVERY DAY, and the five things need to be different with each new day.  She said she thanked God for her teeth one day, which seems a funny thing to thank God for, unless you don’t have them, or have problems with them.  I’ve thought about being thankful so many times.  It’s easy to think of all we wish we had, or to ponder why we go through tough stuff.  But having a mindset, NO MATTER WHAT, of being thankful, now that is something to strive for.

Paul is down to 900 calories via his feeding tube!  The rest of the needed calories he’s EATING and DRINKING!  He’s gained five pounds back!  He went to church yesterday for the first time in about four and a half months!  We are thankful!

I pray for any of you needing encouragement, that TODAY, God would bless your heart with an awareness of all you have to be thankful for, IN SPITE of the tough stuff.  God loves YOU and cares about YOU.

Have a blessed day TODAY.

Diana   

WimsReport – April 11, 2008

Good evening.  Paul continues to improve.  Eating a little more every day.  Of the 2100 calories a day, he’s now eating/drinking about 900 of them.  His goal (yes, Paul with a goal…imagine) is to have the feeding tube removed next Friday, one week from today!  He is still on a mostly soft diet, but we’re adding to it daily.  FOOD…Paul is enjoying it once again!!!  He’s gained back four pounds now.  I think I’ve gained some of HIS weight back too.  Someone said, “At least you kept it in the family.”  Thanks.

Today Paul’s friend, and business associate, Mike, came by to walk with him.  Sunny, beautiful, spring day.  They walked 1.2 miles (yeah!).  Then Mike went to the club and brought back a golf cart.  They took off for a ride around all 18 holes, saying hello to a few friends along the way.  I later asked Paul if that made him excited to get back out there.  Yes, but just the thought of turning and swinging made him hurt.  There is another goal…GOLF in the not so distant future.  In the meantime, Paul continues to putt a few balls across the carpet almost every day.

His neck wound has almost closed up entirely, and healing continues in all the other incision areas as well.  He still has pain, but that’s to be expected as his body continues to heal from the inside out.  Coughing, sneezing, even moving wrong brings an immediate reminder that his body is yet mending.  We take ONE DAY AT A TIME.

God has been good to us through it all.  And we are learning lessons that I think we’ll be chewing on for the rest of our lives.  My friend, Barbara, whose own husband is battling cancer, sent this quote to us before Paul’s surgery—

WE BELONG TO EACH OTHER.  WE ARE THE LORD’S GIFT TO ONE ANOTHER IN THE BATTLES OF LIFE.  WE WERE NEVER MEANT TO FIGHT ALONE WITHOUT THE LORD’S HELP AND THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF ONE ANOTHER.  IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO WIN IN LIFE’S BATTLES WITHOUT FAITHFUL FRIENDS WHO PRAY WITH US, UPHOLD US, AND FIGHT OUR BATTLES AS IF THEY WERE THEIR OWN.  LIFE HAS ITS DIFFICULT TIMES WHEN WE NEED FRIENDS AND THE LORD PROVIDES THE RIGHT PERSON AT THE RIGHT TIME.

I would have to say a big AMEN to that!  You have been real warriors on our behalf, and Paul and I say a heart-felt THANK YOU.  May Jesus continue His work in all of our lives for His glory.  We will come out stronger on the other side of this journey.  It is strength that comes from a foundation built on the ROCK.

Isaiah 26:3-4   YOU WILL KEEP IN PERFECT PEACE HIM WHOSE MIND IS STEADFAST, BECAUSE HE TRUSTS IN YOU.  TRUST IN THE LORD FOREVER, FOR THE LORD, THE LORD, IS THE ROCK ETERNAL.

Goodnight, faithful family and friends.

Diana

 

     

WimsReport – April 5, 2008

Good evening, dear family and friends.  Paul has been home now one week today.  The days are full and challenging.  He has gone through quite a surgery and has many incisions that are still healing.  He feels like a truck ran over him, just bruised and sore in different places.  BUT he is improving with each new day.    And he’s sleeping great.  The list of medicines is getting shorter, and he’s needing pain meds less often.

Wednesday, April 2, we met with Dr. K and Paul was given the green light to begin drinking and eating again.  On the way home we stopped at Jamba Juice for a strawberry/banana SMOOTHIE!!!  I think this day couldn’t have arrived too soon.  Later that day he had soup and some pasta with sauce.  I wish I’d had my camera when I asked him how the pasta tasted…Paul had a BIG smile on his face.

Paul has been walking almost every day.  The normal trek is around our block, which is four-tenths of a mile.  His longest walk was eight-tenths of a mile.  He’d lost 34 pounds from the time this journey began until last Saturday.  He’s now gained back two.  He’s very weak still, and gets winded easily, but it’s only been 18 days since surgery.  When you think about that, he’s doing great. 

He has a stomach feeding tube, which supplies the majority of his needed calories and protein.  We have cut back by two cans now, since he’s been able to make that much up per day through eating.  Dr. K would like to see him off the feeding tube entirely ASAP.  Because he doesn’t eat a big amount at a time, he’s hungry again soon.  We’ve been told, because his stomach is so much smaller now, he will always be a “grazer”, eating little mini meals all through the day.

The wound VAC was taken off yesterday because his neck is healing up so nicely.  But that meant I’m learning and being stretched in a new area…I’m now in charge of changing his dressing once a day.  I felt a bit wobbly-kneed as I watched what I’d be doing.  I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH HIM WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH.   (Philippians 4:13) 

We are both tired.  And there have been moments of discouragement.  But God has been so very faithful to meet us right where we’re at, and He is trustworthy.  Our dear friends, Roger and Della, sent us a wooden sign that says—  FAITH IS NOT BELIEVING THAT GOD CAN.  IT IS KNOWING THAT HE WILL. 

I think that is one of the things I’ve learned most through this journey.  GOD IS ABLE.  NOTHING IS TOO DIFFICULT, NOTHING IMPOSSIBLE FOR HIM.  He has encouraged us time and time again through His Word, and it’s just what we need at the moment.  Until I take my last breath, I will share with all who will listen, that we each need to know what God’s Word says for ourselves.  THEN, when we are going through the storms of life, which we ALL will, He can bring His Word to our minds to comfort, guide, give hope, sustain, and nourish.  His Word is LIFE-GIVING.  That I believe with all that is in me.

Dr. K told us during the week after Paul’s surgery that he’d avoided a certain muscle because he knew that Paul would need it for golf.  That just blessed me.  Right in the middle of surgery, he’s thinking about how much Paul enjoys golf and makes a decision that will make it easier for Paul to get back out on the course!  Within a couple of days after surgery, Paul and Jennifer, two friends that Paul does business with, brought him a new putter.  Shortly after they left, Paul was standing, tubes coming out everywhere, with the putter in hand, practicing, just for a moment.  And I do have a picture of that!

Paul and I are ever so grateful to each of you for your prayers, support, and encouragement.  I leave you with a verse from my Psalm reading today—

Psalm 42:5   PUT YOUR HOPE IN GOD, FOR I WILL YET PRAISE HIM, MY SAVIOR AND MY GOD.

Goodnight.

Diana

  

WimsReport – March 31, 2008

Hello, dear ones.  PAUL IS HOME!!!  He came home on Saturday.  It’s been a full couple of days.  We are blessed beyond measure, and so very THANKFUL to our God.

Gratitude and appreciation are just a few of the words that come to my mind when I think of your prayers and thoughts towards us. 

Goodnight.

Diana 

WimsReport – March 27, 2008

Hello again.  I feel I didn’t clarify what I meant about Paul’s prognosis.  This type of cancer is one that likes to return.  Because Paul’s body didn’t respond to the radical radiation and chemo, the thought is that IF the cancer returns…in months, years, EVER, it might prove hard to treat, since treatments didn’t work well this time.  Dr. K and our oncologist will be talking and may recommend a different type of chemo.  At the moment Paul is just to focus on mending.  And mending he is…and preparing to come home SATURDAY!

This has been a HOPE-FILLED journey with our Living God.  It is no less of one now.  We continue to see the hand of God working in our lives, day by day by day.  The enemy of our souls will not thwart God’s plans for Paul.  I’ve thought about that a lot lately.  This morning I found a verse that states it just right—

Job 42:2   I KNOW THAT YOU CAN DO ALL THINGS; NO PLAN OF YOURS CAN BE THWARTED. 

I feel that God brought to my mind a situation in the Old Testament where the enemies of God’s people turned on each other and were annihilated.  I looked the word ANNIHILATED up in the dictionary and it means to destroy completely.  I started searching for the passage in the Bible.  I read about Gideon in Judges 6-8.  I will include some of the verses—

Judges 7:12   THE MIDIANITES, THE AMALEKITES AND ALL THE OTHER EASTERN PEOPLES HAD SETTLED IN THE VALLEY, THICK AS LOCUSTS.  THEIR CAMELS COULD NO MORE BE COUNTED THAN THE SAND ON THE SEASHORE.

Judges 7:22   …THE LORD CAUSED THE MEN THOUGHOUT THE CAMP TO TURN ON EACH OTHER WITH THEIR SWORDS.

It’s an incredible passage of God’s AWESOME power, and how He turns things around.  If He can cause men to turn on each other (a HUGE number of them), He can certainly cause cancer cells to turn on each other and  be decimated, annihilated, and completely destroyed!!!  Amen.  (That means AND MAY IT BE SO!)

Do I sound confident?  Absolutely, utterly, unconditionally, thoroughly, unquestionably, certainly, definitely.  Not in myself, but in a BIG GOD, the MAKER of HEAVEN and EARTH!

For you who feel you’re in a hopeless marriage, have troubled children, financial problems, health issues, or ANY OTHER difficult situation, TAKE HEART!  Our God is an AWESOME GOD—

Luke 1:37   FOR NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOD.

Goodnight, dear ones.

Diana