This side of the sod...

 

BOX SCORE




Element

Current

Std. Range

Trend

Hemoglobin

9.0

13-17

^

Platelets

70

140-375

v

ANC

1410

1800-8300

^

Surprises. I like some of them. Others not so much. When I turned thirty, my wife and my office staff gave me a surprise birthday party. Not my cup of tea. I felt like I was on stage and had to perform, although I did appreciate the thought. 

This week, on the other hand, we got a nice surprise when I started my current round of chemotherapy. Dr. Brow had told me she was reducing the number of days I would have injections from 7 to 5, but what we didn't know is that in addition, she reduced the dosage of injectable chemo from 4 shots to 3!! Now that's my kind of surprise. The shots are not particularly painful, but after all, it is a kind of poison they are shooting into my body. My hope is that this reduction in chemo, which when you think about it is almost 50% (3 X 5 = 15 vs. 4 X  7 =  28), will help to keep my ANC up, so we can be more social. It also should help to relieve my anemia, so I have more energy. 

Typically, my ANC rises a bit during chemo week, before is slumps the following week. If you look at the box score above, you will see that my ANC is higher than it's been in a while. We got to see our son and his family on Sunday. They came for lunch, and we had a grand time, sharing hugs and catching up with what has been going on int their lives. 

Little things mean a lot. (Wasn't there a love song with that refrain several decades ago?) Like, for instance, salad! We've been able to have salad for lunch the last several days, because my ANC is up. Sounds like a little thing, doesn't it? Well, I can tell you that it not only tastes good, but my colon is happy, too!! I know, TMI. Sorry about that, but little things mean a lot. 

One of the many blessings that I have received as a result of having leukemia is relearning how to appreciate every little blessing in life. A few years back, we met a gentleman named Jake at church. Jake was in  his 90s, and whenever we would ask him how he was, he would say, "Every day I wake up on this side of the sod is a good day." I appreciate that statement more now than I did when Jake, God rest his soul, would say it. 

So, life is good. I may have leukemia, but I have a wife who loves me, kids and grandkids who are all doing well. Salad for lunch, and today is one more day on this side of the sod!  

 

 

 

 

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