thank you for all your great ideas as we start our next adventure! we made some rookie mistakes during the ABVD and certainly learned a lot about what we would do differently given a choice. we are mindful, though, that every round of chemo is a unique beast. although i really wish i could say otherwise, neither of us has the same energy for this second assault. the last 7 months of waiting (on top of the first 6 months of ABVD) has left us older and more tired than we might have imagined possible. still, we are energized by the opportunity to turn the tables on this beast and achieve a cure!

even more powerful for us is the love, strength and wisdom that washes over us from you all. you are our truest, greatest blessing! for me, this is the greatest gift God has given us since starting our fight against the cancer. a gift beyond measure, beyond words. a gift many people will never receive, regardless of how long they live.

many of you were strangers, or near-strangers, to me when first we started this journey. most of you were met in the swirl and din of dances and parties – not the best places to get to know you to begin with. as you have probably realized, i am painfully shy in my own way. because of this, i find it quite challenging to bridge the outward gap between acquaintance and friend. here we are, 13 months in, and i cannot possibly count how many of you have become dear, close friends (though perhaps i have not done a good job of saying it).

it is all because of you – your generosity of spirit and deed, your clever suggestions to buoy us up and solutions to challenges brought by the cancer and associated fatigue, the tender bravery with which you have shared your own sorrows and struggles, your willingness to sit quietly with me through the hard bits, and the way you have simply scooped me and Andrew back up into the light when the darkness seemed overwhelming.

thank you so much for everything you have done. and thank you for your steadfast commitment to us as we continue into this next phase of our journey.

per Shandie’s excellent suggestion, we have just finished creating a schedule through FoodTidings that will allow people to sign up for meals. if you are interested in helping with this, please either post a comment or email one of us and we will send you the link.

and Giannine was right on target about Dinner A Fare! the dinners are very different from our typical fare, and i think they would be a wonderful way to keep Andrew eating. i am not sure that Operation Hunger Strike (also known as, ‘If you won’t eat, I won’t eat.’) will be as effective the second time round.

we are going to try and do a better job asking for help this time – but sometimes it is hard for us to know how you can help, stuck as we are in the eye of the storm. if you have suggestions or ideas, please don’t hesitate to share them!