Hello everyone,
I'm sure many of you have given up on me and I can't fault you for that! I have been horrible in keeping all of you up to date and I apologize!
When I last posted in November, I had finally adjusted my eating habits to allow me to take my new cancer pills without getting sick. The new treatment has helped me slowly get some strength back and I am actually going in to work on a semi-regular basis. My biggest problems now are shortness of breath and, of course, the neuoropthy in my feet. I started physical therapy last week to try and get my muscles back into shape so they use oxygen more efficiently which should get rid of my shortness of breath (and help me loose some of the weight that I've gained as well!). My goal is to be able to walk the dog again this summer! As for the cancer, the pills, according to the latest CT Scan, are keeping everything the same size and I had an MRI and follow up with my neurologist this week, and the brain tumor is the same size as well. So, considering the endless negative posibilities, I am very, very blessed!!
Everything with the Hicok clan is going well too! Catherine keeps plugging along, trooper that she is, without any complaints. She is on a "quilt retreat" this weekend which gives her a chance to forget about "things" for awhile and just relax and talk and sew. Melissa is still in school at UNI
majoring in Accounting and doing pretty darn good! Grant recently got a position with Deere as a test cell technician and the Deere Product Engineering Center in Waterloo. Jody
broke her ankle in January and just got her "boot" removed and is walking again... a little gingerly, but walking. And Eli... well that little guy is just fun to have around! He is full of energy and giggles, building his vocabulary, interested in everything, and right now loves guitars and "The Wiggles".
And now... Bible trivia. The question from the last post was: According to the Bible, how many pearly gates are there? Well, according to Revelation 21:12-21, the answer is 12. Did you get it correct? OK, now for for this entries question... This one isn't actually Biblical, but you should be able to answer it: What religious movement began with Martin Luther's attack on the sale of
indulgences?
In
closing today, I like to thank all of you for your prayers and support. While God has been my spiritual strength, my friends, family, and church family have been there to support my physical and emotional needs throughout this "adventure". I don't know why God has blessed me so abundantly, but I figure He is keeping me around for a reason. He has guided me to take on a couple of leadership roles at my church and to support fellow "cancer siblings" as they go through their own "adventure". Having this disease is much like anything we experience in life. Only by having it can you truly appreciate and understand the emotional and physical roller coaster that others with cancer are going through.
God's
Blessings to you and yours!
Yours in Christ,
Jace
