Life Is A Rollercoaster Ride
In 1989 we watched the movie parenthood and the grandma in it had great advice about life for the dad in the movie played by Steve Martin. She said: “when I was 19, grandpa took me on a roller coaster ride… Up, down, up, down. Oh, what a ride! I always wanted to go again. You know, it was so interesting to me that a ride could make me so frightened, so scared, so sick, so excited, and so thrilled all together! Some didn’t like it. They went on the merry-go-round. That just goes around. Nothing! I like the roller coaster. You get more out of it.” It’s so true that life is like a roller coaster ride with all its ups and downs and curves, you never know what’s coming, when the peaks and valleys are coming, but it does make life interesting. It seems better than just circling around getting dizzy seeing the same things over and over.
Mike and I are no exception to the roller coaster, life, especially lately as we navigate the cancer-ing journey! Mike did well with his last gamma knife surgery but, for about a week afterwards he said he felt like he was brain damaged from it because he couldn’t get the right words to come out when talking and he felt dizzy all the time. Thankfully that has passed and he has been doing pretty well. After a phone consult with Dr. Molina from Mayo and also talking to the doctors at Hope4Cancer. It was decided that mike should go back on Gavreto (formerly Blu 667) to try and shrink the lung tumors, as well as prevent any more METS to his brain because it crosses the blood brain barrier. Gavreto is a targeted, systemic Kinase inhibitor to target the RET gene that Mike has. It is not specifically a chemotherapy, although it has many side effects like one. It can cause increased liver enzymes, as well as lowering lymphocytes, platelets, and other things in the blood so he hast to have his blood checked every three weeks. So far his liver enzymes only went up a little, so they were happy with that. It also causes stomach issues, fatigue, bleeding, dry eyes, and a long list of other side effects. We had a very hard/low the first week he was on it with major stomach issues/pain and he couldn’t get out of the house but thankfully that is manageable now.
We have been enjoying family time. Pool time, walking, golfing, ballgames, weddings, home projects, graduations, and more ballgames keep us busy, along with all the home therapies we do to boost Mike’s immunity and oxygenate his body. We “ride” the high times and endure the lows, but have found that the low times bring us closer to God. Life is not always easy, we do have hard days and we get sad. When we think too far into the future, we grieve, but then we choose joy… We make memories with our family. We ride the highs of the roller coaster, that is this life, and we brace ourselves for the lows, trusting in him who is always there with us.
Joshua 1:9 have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.💜🙏🏼🙌🏼
Be blessed,
Paula
