More Mist Ahead

First a puzzle for you:

Some hard places to be in - please re-arrange the following in the order you feel most appropriate - softest place to hardest!

NB This is meant to be light hearted - visits and conversations are wonderful for me and this is not a criticism of anyone in particular - more a gentle review of different situations - a gentle poke of humour - I have not had the situation of the visitor who came to see a patient of mine 10 years ago. The poor patient was dying from cancer. The visitor settled himself in a chair in the corner and spoke for 60 minutes about his personal pile problems and then left....!

• Visitors who overstay when you are tired
• Not having to go clothes shopping when you are "terminally ill"
• Being captive in a trivial conversation with long term plans for the future - when yours is probably pretty short
• Singing a hymn that expects you to smile and be happy - about dying
  
• Friends who tell you you have never looked better when you can not remember feeling sorer
• No need to fill in a tax form this year!
  
• Realising you are doing a favourite thing - for probably the last time
• Realising you have probably run out of time to do something you promised to do
• Really enjoying a trip that you have have never been able to do but suddenly get the opportunity for - eg a rail trip to Thurso on the northern tip of the scottish mainland by train, past frozen lakes, sunbathing seals and snow capped hills. The snap shots below do not do the experience justice - It was fantastic!
  

The angel and I went to the see the oncologist today in the first part of a long "NHS" day - of which more later.

We looked at scan results, my blood tests and my recent history and all of us agreed that while the cisplatinum had done a lot of good in the first 5 cycles, the disease is now progressing, my liver is inflammed and more chemotherapy would be poisonous and dangerous for me and my liver rather than helpful and safe.

It is 4 weeks since my last treatment and most of my symptoms are controlled most of the time; so we are going to stick with small necessary changes to current treaments of symptoms rather than embark on other, potentially dangerous, life-threatening chemotherapy.

The misty prospect that now lies ahead is unclear and we have lots of friends who are helping us through in all sorts of ways that we find humbling and encouraging - thank you for your support in visits, prayer, thoughts and interest.

After our visit to the first hospital (or some call it the second) we then went 35 miles to meet up at the helpful low vision clinic with my father at the DGH where MS had kindly taken him for his follow-up check to try and improve his stroke damaged eyesight. We came away in the spring afternoon sunlight laden with ideas on lines, along with loans of lenses and lamps, promises of prisms and more support and leaving behind a slightly dumbstruck orthoptist who was visibly wrong footed by the 90 year gentleman who gently asked her if she had any low vision aids that would help him with his computing...

We had left home at 0900, been to 2 hospitals, got home at 1800, travelled 140 miles round trip, had two serious conditions cared for and received expert appropriate advice. All without discrimination or favour.

Viva la NHS.

Our society has a valuable heritage of care that is Christian and worthy of replication - and we are very thankful for it. How can a country like the USA dither over caring for its people so?

A few months ago I said we were happy with oncology and prayer together. Oncology has done a lot of good. We are thanking God for answers to prayer now.