March 31, 2006
March at Sanctuary ends with an indecisive morning – some clouds, a bit of wind, and lightness along the southern horizon. This day is the 106th day of MDS and we are hopeful in a new way. Hope, to me, has several levels; on the one hand, there is the overarching emotion that speaks of God and ultimate verities. On the other is the hope that has little fizzles of excitement around the edges where the natural impulse to quash (lest the disappointment is too great) doesn’t quite reach. When I went in for the blood draw the day after the completion of the third round of chemotherapy, the white blood cell count had gone up, and the red blood cell count was also higher; it seems significant to us because right after chemo, the cells are stressed out from the therapy. This might indicate some improvement! When I went into the third round of treatment, my white blood cells had gone to .985, hitting a new low. Thursday’s reading was 1.2, an appalling number as the count was on its way down, but now, as we see it again, one which holds promise. (Normal begins at 4.0)
The circumstances of my life are the same since the level of vulnerability to infection has not changed, but now there is the hope that a turn-around might be beginning. We had already had the conversation about not being able to take the trip to Russia in late June, and we have to make final decisions on that venue very soon. We’ll “do the numbers” after next week’s reading and see if there are portents for the future.
The cooking lessons go on, and Charles has mastered chicken and steak on the grill, steamed vegetables served with lemon and butter, and the top half of home made pizza. Breads are to be tackled next. Charles has a natural inclination to clean up after using each utensil while I have difficulty with this obvious virtue. To me the meal must be served hot at all costs and the kitchen counters can be completely covered with the tools of construction when I serve. While eating at just the right time is grand, getting up post meal and entering a kitchen that has already been cleaned is pretty swell also, so we shall strive toward a middle ground. We have been having merry times dealing together with these matters and the cook book continues to expand.