We have officially hit the middle of March. Per my last posting, I was unwell the other weekend. No matter how much I tried to quarantine myself, Susie caught the virus and fell ill at the beginning of the week. She did not go in for treatment on Monday. She seemed to fight off the virus better than anticipated. We did go in on Wednesday. Her platelets were at 80k, so she passed the halfway point between dangerously low and normal. Her white and red blood cell numbers are still low, but like the platelets not in the danger zone. Nevertheless, Susie is moving forward with reducing treatments from three times a week to just Fridays.
This puts us in unusual territory. Since Thanksgiving, Susie has been doing some sort of treatment, basically on a daily basis. One would think with her new found freedom, we would be jumping for joy. Unfortunately, Susie’s energy and ability to read/ focus is quite hampered. So while she will now have time, her ability to use it is less than satisfactory. I was looking at the treatment period as a marathon and then being back to normal, but I think Susie is really in a triathlon. The initial cancer treatment was her first stage (OCT-JAN), the blood recovery (JAN-Present) is her second stage and the whole person/ mind return is her third stage. She’s had a great attitude through the first two stages and I felt that I could focus on the tasks at hand and provide the support she needed. It is this third phase that I feel inadequate, mostly from an emotional preparedness. I believe the thinking patterns during this last stage will require critical thought in areas that are not my strong suit (like feelings, emotions and patience). Hopefully, I am wrong.
Anyhow, we have entered into Spring Break. Pearl got to visit with our friends the Mahaffeys, before they left for camping in West Texas. Susie tried going to a thrift shop with Lisa Strong for the first time in a very very long time. We had a meal delivered by a former colleague and dear friend, Sandra Rago. We enjoyed catching up about work, California colleges and life in general. Susie’s mom went to the coast for a few days of salty air. She came back in time to join Susie for Friday infusions. I made a very large chicken noodle soup at the beginning of the week that came out of the freezer at the end of the week, as Pearl came down with the dreaded March virus. 
While Spring Break is almost over for us, Gabriel is leaving today for Thailand for two weeks. He will be in the village of Maejantai, near Chiang Mai, to design an organic composting station for improving the soil structure of the village’s coffee farms.
Lastly, I want to thank everyone for the cards, love and prayers that have been sent our way. Susie has greatly enjoyed reading the cards as they arrive and seeing our Hoosier cabinet fill-up to its very edges. The care packages have also been a delight (Thank you Karen and Scott for the GOOD Voodoo JuJu too).
