September 25

It’s September 25th and it’s an anniversary of sorts.  A year ago today, I was diagnosed with tongue cancer.  The past year has been crazy and hard to digest. After myriad tests, I was diagnosed, a treatment plan was created and executed, and I appear to be cured. As Alexander Hamilton said, “it’s a blur sir.” 

It’s an understatement to say a lot has happened in that year:
– a pandemic started and is still underway
– an amazing vaccine was created, released, approved, and millions of people are benefiting from it
– millions of people in America have decided to make politics more important than their and other people’s health, therefore the pandemic continues
– a new President has been elected and another one won’t go away
– Bobby, a close friend, succumbed to cancer less than 3 weeks after he was diagnosed.  Bobby was incredibly helpful, positive, and supportive during my treatment and recovery, and I still can’t believe he’s gone
– I completed 33 radiation treatments and 7 chemo infusions and have had 2 clean scans
– Suzy, my beautiful and wonderful wife, and I are closer than ever and made it through this year, more in love than ever (at least I am) (editor’s note: Suzy feels the same)
– Lee and his wonderful girlfriend Heidy announced their engagement
– Irene and Eric are having our first grandchild, a boy we refer to as DeVandre
– the Suns made the NBA finals, with Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton as inspirations for the namesake DeVandre (and as I’m sure Eric and Irene would want to interject here – that’s not really going to be his name!)
– the Giants are leading the Dodgers with just a few weeks to go in the season
– I’ve made some great new relationships through cancer support groups and this blog, getting close to Todd, Chuck, Carla, Michael, Jennifer, and Joe
– I am lucky enough to be able to golf a couple of times a week, play farkle weekly with Chris and Paul, and travel with Suzy in our RV
– we had a great vacation with Suzy, Eric and Irene (and DeVandre), and Lee and Heidy in Minneapolis and Wisconsin, with activities including cruising on a pontoon boat and assembling a crib
– we’ve enjoyed weekly dinners with Lee and Heidy, playing Magic, watching the Giants or Suns, and just spending time together
– and there are so many more moments, big and small, that make me thankful to be here

Bottom line is I am here, mostly healthy, with Suzy and my wonderful family and friends.  I can once again embrace a quote from Hamilton that I rejected just a year ago —

“Look around, look around, at how lucky we are to be alive right now”.