Living in the “in between”

When you or a loved one has cancer, especially stage four cancer, there is never a day that goes by when you don’t think about it, pray about it, dwell on it, try not to think about it, and everything in between. Even though the “what ifs” and thoughts about the future are ever present in our day-to-day lives, we do try to live normal lives in between scans, doctors appointments, and holistic treatments.

So far this summer we have enjoyed watching our grandkid’s softball and baseball games, had a great time with family over the July 4th holiday, spent lots of time in the pool, gotten plenty of sunshine, and walked lots of miles. Mike also recently had to shoot a rabid woodchuck that was hanging out next to our garage. We have enjoyed activities at the Floyd County fair and we’ve eaten lots of fresh eggs and produce from our garden.

Things that seem boring and mundane to most are not to us. We want more normal life activities, more time to just sit and talk and watch our kids and grandkids interact together, time to walk, time to enjoy the sights, smells, and sounds around us.

I pray for health and healing for Mike and all our friends who are on their own cancer journey to get to enjoy this life that God has given us. The truth is we all get distracted by thoughts of the future and it steals our joy of the present and we can’t let it. None of us know what the future looks like, only God does.

Mike’s brain MRI is coming up soon on August 13th and we want to thank you for praying with us for a clear scan so we can cancel the GKS that is scheduled for the 14th! We tried to set up a lung CT scan on the 13th as well, but weirdly Dr. Molina is scheduled for jury duty that week! (If you remember we had to reschedule an earlier GKS because the neurosurgeon was on jury duty)

Enjoy the rest of your summer and don’t let worries about the future ruin the present… it really is a gift!

In His love and ours,

Paula