Waiting

The home care nurse came yesterday, drew blood, took it to local hospital labs, and they faxed information to Huntsman. Results indicated Dale needed platelets, so he called me at work and we made the journey to Huntsman for the platelet transfusion. He feels slightly better, but I suppose there will be blood transfusion within the next week or so. Dale rests all day but really does not feel well. His mind is full of thoughts to heal, yet is plagued with weariness. He tries hard to be positive, not "get in my way," and be a good patient. Nurses see him and greet him cheerfully by name, some even shaking their heads in a look of "Dale! Good to see you, except I am so sorry you are going through this ordeal. I will do what I can to make it easier for you." That helps him a lot.

I feel forever grateful to my team at work. The guys are phenomenally supportive and understanding of my ineptness, spontaneous and abrupt dismissal from the day, and respect of our needs. Faculty and staff fit right in with a huge basket of gratitude. I feel that Dale and I are "handling" things pretty well, actually, but oh my goodness! If we did not have the support of friends, families, neighbors, co-workers, staff at Huntsman, and all the positive thoughts and prayers for us, it would be so so much harder. We get a hint of hope, in each moment of care and service we receive.

This month has tests ahead to determine what treatment is next, so in the meantime, we wait. We wait for chemo to go away from his system. We wait for bone marrow to produce healthy blood again. We wait for answers of each day's questions. We wait for the day when this is done. We wait for completed tests. We wait for tests results. We wait for further instructions from his doctors. We wait.