Radiation with a side of bologna

 I’ve been sitting here for close to an hour thinking about how I would write this post. The first stop going down this road was to see an oncologist, Dr. Lodhawala. It was the usual  blood draws, talk about treatment plan, blood counts, chemo etc.. Dr. Lodhawala agreed with the recommendations that I should have 6 weeks of chemo and radiation followed up with more scans and MRIs to see if more treatment would be needed. On the plus side the Dr. set things up so that I would take a pill once a day for six weeks instead of the traditional chemo. There were other benefits - I got to keep my hair, as I think about it hair loss is probably the most noticeable and expected side effect of cancer treatments.  

,Next stop radiation clinic and the usual scans,MRIs, x-rays, blood work and of course talk about the plan. The plan worked out to be 6 weeks of radiation, Monday through Friday at1:15 PM. Radiation is a very precise treatment which is why my appointment was at 1:15 each day. Another  equally important aspect of the treatment was alignment and to insuure precise alignment every time I went for treatment I was given 3 round circles tatooed on my lower back - not so low you would think they were tramp stamps. 

As the days and weeks went by I got to know people who had appointments about the same time as mind and also a couple people from the pool. Another thing I noticed each time I arrived was a white, full dressed Harley Davidson, so one day I asked if anyone knew who’s it was. To my surprise it belonged to one of the nurses doing my radiation treatment, we  had mutual friend who also rode and she asked if I wanted to take it for a ride. I actually took a few moments to think before I said sure. She gave me the keys and said she got off of work at 5:00.

Ever heard of the G&R Tavern? It is in Waldo, Ohio about 10 miles south of Marion,they have one of the most unique and  best tasting bologna sandwiches  you could find. 

I took my time parking wanting as many people as possible to see me getting off  of this beautiful  piece of machinery . Walking in I took a seat at the back bar and ordered my usual bologna with cheese, no onion and extra pickles but to my disappointment  no-one came in asking who this fine looking Harley belonged to.

I finished eating and as when I came in I took my time getting on the bike and rode back to Marion. Another  day of radiation was finished but this one was special…

Been a long haul....

 

As I sit here gathering my thoughts one that comes to mind is why do they call it a journey? Anyhow call it what you want it has been a long time since my story began.  June 27,2017 marked 5 years since my last treatment for bladder cancer, I’ve heard it said when you hit the five year mark you are cancer free. Let me tell you that is a lie. On June 28,2017 after a routine colonoscopy I was told I had colon cancer

So What now? My first of many stops was The James cancer hospital at  The Ohio State University Hospital in Columbus Ohio, where I was referred to a colorectal surgeon, oncologist, and and a Dr. who does radiation treatments. They all seemed to agree I would need chemo and radiation treatments 5 days a week, Monday - Friday for 6 weeks.  I lived to close to The James to get housing assistance and there was no way I could make the drive every day or even think of asking my nephew Tom to make the drive with me.  Eventually they connected me with an oncologist and radiologist in Marion Ohio where I lived.  

I was about to begin my second battle with Cancer, I know I would not have made it through my first battle  with cancer if it were not for my nephew tom. He was with me for every appointment, test, scan, and surgery a major blessing from God.

More to come about the road so far.....

Been a long time .....

 My mind wanders a lot, sometimes a song will bring to mind an event that that had occurred in my life and other times an event will bring to mind a song. You may have noticed I have no Blog  entries since July of 2013, This brings to mind a scene in the movie Crossroads  where one of the main actors simply says “It’s been a long time Willie Brown.”

It’s not only been a long time since my last entry it has been a very long hard road, thanks to the big “C”, cancer. There have been an assortment of good times to go along with the not so good. 

One thing I enjoy doing and get to do often is basically sit and watch the water go by.  I usually find myself doing this in downtown Port Clinton, where the Portage River takes you onto Lake Erie. Usually this involved food Subway, Wendys, a pack lunch from home, or maybe walleye from Jolly Rogers seafood. A couple times I took my laptop and did a FaceBook live since they had free WiFi, and finally on occasion I would take my dog Kain.  I’ve often thought that much of Jesus’ ministry involved water. His first miracle was turning water into  wine, often He was near a body of water when sharing the Gospel;He walked on the water;Jonah and the whale;Noah and the ark etc… So this is just the start of catching you up on where I'm at on what has been a long journey fighting cancer.

Heavy Metal Thunder....

A guy I work with Dave Smith is an awesome artist in my opinion and for several years several years I've wanted him to do me a custom guitar.  Roughly 3 weeks ago I went to The James for an unscheduled cystoscopy. I decided then that life was to short, I along with my brother stopped at a place called Music Go Round and I bought a B.C. Rich Warlock.  Before I had time to get attached to my new guitar I took it to Dave and told him what I was thinking.  

The design represents what is very near to my heart.  Some say the upper image looks like a dove, others a Harley logo. Truth be know it is actually a U.S. Air Force logo.  If you've heard me preach or know me well, you know that probably the only thing closer to my heart than the U.S. Air Force is Jesus.

The lightening represents the power of God and the three crosses the crucifixion.  As a Pastor I often looked at Christmas, Palm Sunday and Easter as "cookie cutter" sermons, the story never changes so how hard can it be? Right?  Well as a Pastor you are always looking for a different angle on the "same story." 

Last Easter while sharing about the crucifixion, resurrection, etc. Luke  23:39-43 spoke to me in a different way.  There were three crosses on that hill, 2 sinners one each side of Jesus to whom we do not give much thought.  Rather we focus on the center cross Jesus hung on.  

It occurred to me that even though it may not be on a cross we all eventually face death and must choose a "cross" to bear. We can either choose to mock Jesus  with our last breath or call on him as the second thief chose to do when he simply said "Lord remember me when You come into Your kingdom" to which Jesus replied "Assuredly I say to you, today you will be with Me in paradise."  Which cross will you choose?  Will you live or die? Check out this song, Heavy Metal Thunder by Messiah Prophet.