Not the Best News

Well, I've been kind of trying to lead up to this, while mostly I've been wanting to avoid it, that's just not realistic. When I first started this Blog, my thoughts were anything but having to deal with this... but, as it turns out, this is the path I'll be "wandering" for quite some time.

Whether you choose to follow every footstep, check back from time to time, or never want to visit here again, the saga will unfold, and I'll do my best to encapsulate it here. Hopefully there will be some wit and wisdom I share along the way, to make it all worthwhile. OK, here goes...

And no, I don't suppose this is much of a laughing matter, none the less, I intend to at least try and keep my sense of humor - and would ask that you do too, Dear Reader... Earlier this month I was diagnosed, as having Stage 1x~2x Tonsil Cancer. The general prognosis by the ENT is “good,” but first I will have to meet with the Oncologist for exact details. The initial proposed treatment plan is Radiation, and possibly Chemotherapy. There will be three 5 day sessions, over a 6 week period, followed by a relatively short recovery period.

There will be the usual side effects that will accompany the treatment, but they should be mild by comparison to heavier doses associated with more advance cases. I think that’s all supposed to be “good news.” Right now, I just don’t know – this is all I know. My first consultation is a few days away, and I won’t know ANYTHING further until then, and that I’m sure will only be the beginning.

I am fortunate to be blessed with lots of Loving Family, and many Caring Friends – for which I am most grateful. Beyond that, as we say here in Hawaii, this is "my kuliana,” meaning, it’s for me to deal with. To that end, and because I know there’s more to this than it just being "my deal," and some of you will have questions, and others will be interested in my well being; I’m going to use this Blog as my way of dealing, and sharing the subject. Perhaps it’ll be a bit of therapy for me too, as one tends to focus more on things you put in writing then things you just think about. For everyone else, it’ll be a means to see the answers and know “wassup” about the same time as I do. And if you don’t… well, it’s easy enough not to have to go here.

So, as I've been trying to absorb this new news over the past week or so, I've turned to cleaning out a lot of "old junk," as it seems the prudent thing to do. Not unexpectedly, I keep coming across odds and ends and old tid-bits of forgotten words of wisdom and brief moments of authorship... Here's a poem I wrote, probably back around 1972 or so, during my brief stay at El Camino City College:

Alone in the Desert stands a Tree,

Alone in the Sky there soars a Bird.

If by chance, on a branch should rest the Bird,

They are Alone - Together.

And should again the Bird take wing,

Is it the End?

Or the Begining of Forever...?