NOVEMBER 25

Gary finished all the test necessary for the screening process. His PET scan showed little improvement from the last one, which means there is still cancer in his nerves. As the doctor says, that is the purpose of the stem cell/bone marrow transplant.... to get rid of the remaining cancer. There is still no cancer in his bone marrow which is great. He passed the lung test with an A+, which the nurse said no one hardly ever does. My guess is... it is because he has spent so many years preaching.... but it may be due to the fact that he is younger than most going through this. The echocardiogram showed up something irregular with his heart, but the doctor seems to think that it could just be something with the way the test was done and is not too concerned. He is scheduling Gary to see a cardiologist sometime next week to be on the safe side. They will probably do a stress test. Gary will also have a second MRI of his head done next week because for the last several days, he has been experiencing significant pain behind his right eye. They want to make sure they are aware of anything and everything that is going on in his body before starting the transplant. I will be giving more information about the process Gary will go through for the transplant in the next few days for those that are interested. We may hear tomorrow if the insurance will be approving the transplant. Please pray with us that they will and there will be no delay. This is Gary's best chance of beating this aggressive Lymphoma.

NOVEMBER 22

Today was a day of rest. After two days of getting up early and spending most of the day going from appointment to appointment... it was nice to sleep in and not do anything! (Waking up to snow on the ground had nothing to do with our lack of desire to leave the apartment.) We did, however, venture out this evening to meet with Rev. Ival Robinson (Southeast Baptist Church, Tulsa, OK) and his wife Linda. They were in town and we met for dinner. It was an enjoyable evening, in spite of the cold, to visit with friends. We appreciate the Robinson's and Southeast. As a sending church for Gary's parents, they have taken very good care of them.

NOVEMBER 21

Today was an easier day as far as test go, but Gary is very sore from the biopsy he had done yesterday, so walking and getting in and out of the car was difficult. One of the appointments today was a visit with a social worker. She basically was seeing if Gary was mentally and emotionally ready for the the transplant. One of the questions she asked, was "How have you handled or coped with all that is going on?" Gary responded, "With my faith in the Lord."

We were able to expound on that a little more with her. We talked how, it did not mean that we have not had some bad moments, or even days, but that we are able to go to the Lord when things are tough and could not imagine going through something like this without our Faith. I thought about our conversation as we came home. This has definitely been a hard year for us, especially Gary, and we have definitely had our moments. There have been times when I was not too happy with God. I felt like this was not "fair".... in fact, just a few nights ago, I asked Gary if it was wrong for me to feel that way. Gary, of course, said what I knew already... that it was normal and that even David in Psalms was not always happy with God and yet God said that David had a "whole heart" for Him. I just shouldn't stay in that frame of mind.

As I went to bed last night, I opened my Bible to Psalms and was just going to do a quick glance through to see how many times David was upset with the Lord. I did not get through all of Psalms, but read enough to realize that, yes, David had cried out to the Lord many times. In fact, Psalms 6:6 and 7, David says, "I am weary with my groaning: all the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears. Mine eye is consumed because of grief..."

Boy! That was just how I have felt many times! But in verse 8, David says, "...for the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping." And countless times in the Psalms, he says "I will trust in the Lord..." Even when I can not control my emotions, God hears my weeping and He knows my heart. I just need to trust Him.

I hope today, we were able to give a good testimony to this young lady. That even though we are "just human", we are still trusting in God and He is getting us through this. She asked if we had any support other than family and we shared how many people from all over the world were praying for us and giving encouragement by sending cards, writing emails, calling and making comments on Facebook and this blog. I think she was impressed! We do appreciate it all! Thank you!

NOVEMBER 20

Today was a long day for us. Gary had to meet at the Transplant Center at 7:45am for a consult of all the test he would be having done in the next few days. The nurse handed him this bright orange backpack to hold the folder of all the test instructions. It was kind of a slap in the face to have something so tangible, bringing it all into reality that this is really going to happen.

At 8:15am, Gary went in to have a Bone Marrow Biopsy done. This is his second one, so he knew what to expect and was not looking forward to it. The next few days will be painful until the puncture wounds heal. From there, slightly woozy from the sedative, we walked to another building to have more blood drawn and other laboratory work done. Then on to yet another building for an electrocardiogram. After that, and another long walk, Gary had another PET scan done. Finally, at 1pm, he was able to eat after fasting all night. After lunch, we walked again to another building for Gary to have a sinus x-ray, and by this time, I was afraid I would have to carry him to the car! Not only exhaustion, but being sedated for the biopsy and later given a Valium during the PET scan, he was starting to fade fast. All of this is part of the screening process for the bone marrow transplant. Tomorrow will be another full day of test.

KING ABDULLAH BIN ABDULAZIZ

There was a little excitement around town this weekend. King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz was getting a check up at Mayo Clinic. He arrived with an entourage of 800, flying in on two 747's, and occupied two whole floors of the Kahler Grand Hotel . The royal family and personnel spent the weekend dining and shopping in Rochester, estimating to have spent millions of dollars.

I told Gary that King Abdullah

may be able to arrive with 800 family and staff,

but Gary has thousands around

the world praying for him!

NOVEMBER 11

Gary really enjoyed having Lance and Jason visit, but was pretty worn out today as we had a full day of doctor visits. We started the day with blood draws, then visited with a Nephrologist to discuss his kidneys, then on to his Oncologist. The good news is that his creatinine level was down to .09 so this showed that whatever damage his kidneys received during the last treatment.... they have recovered. Gary's Oncologist came in smiling once again and mentioned how pleased he was to see that his kidneys were doing well. He told us that the other doctor looking at the results with him, is also a Catholic and he turned to her to say, "I guess God loves Baptist too!" This is the second time he has been surprised at Gary's progress and made a remark about God. We know it is not a coincidence, but the fact that so many are praying for Gary. How wonderful a testimony this is to his doctor and others that are following his progress. Gary will start testing for the screening process on the 20th and then, if found to be medically safe to go through the transplant process, and if approved by our insurance, they will start harvesting his blood cells shortly after Thanksgiving. We have made plans to return to Oklahoma for Thanksgiving since they will not be able to do much during that time anyway. It has been several years since we were in the States and able to spend Thanksgiving with our family and we will miss being with them during Christmas due to the transplant process, so this will be a special time for us. I will say, that we will miss dearly our fellow missionaries in the Philippines during this time. We always have such a wonderful day, celebrating our thanks for our country and for what the Lord has done for us. Words just can't express our gratitude for all our friends and family that pray daily for Gary. We love you and thank you for it!

GOOD FRIENDS

Our good friends, Lance Gotcher and Jason Harmeyer flew up from Texas to see Gary. They wanted to give him a "pep talk" and encourage him. We had an enjoyable evening catching up on each others families and playing a card game that we have played together for years as missionaries in the Philippines. We spent the evening laughing and Gary went to bed saying how wonderful it was to have his friends here. God has truly blessed us with good friends!

NOVEMBER 7

As I awoke this morning, I commented how it must have got colder during the night and climbed out of bed to shut our bedroom window, only to be surprised that it was SNOWING! Big fat fluffy flakes of snow. Just beautiful! Our little dog, Charlie is fascinated! He keeps begging to go out onto our little balcony to watch the snow fall. He has sat most of the day at the window completely mesmerized. Just seems funny to us that our little Filipino dog knows that something is different.

I wrote last month about Gary having an appointment to see the Genetics department. They were interested in gathering information about his family and the many instances of cancer. We spent this morning going over all the info and then the Genetics counselor conferred with other Geneticist to discuss Gary's case. The conclusion they came to was...... no real conclusion. They explained that Gary's diagnosis is not sporadic, but also can not be considered genetic since they are unable to find a gene that has been passed down from generation to generation. They would place Gary in between sporadic and genetic since there are so many instances in his family. This did not give us any answers for our children or grandchildren necessarily, but by giving our information, it may help in the research for the future development of preventive medicine. Gary did well today although still very weak and just the amount of walking he did going to the appointment, wore him out. Thank you for your prayers!

NOVEMBER 5

Gary met with his doctor this afternoon after having blood work done this morning. His kidneys are healing and doing well, so the doctor was pleased. Today would have been the start of treatment #4, if Gary had not stayed so long in the hospital for the last treatment. The doctor mentioned that he was debating whether or not to schedule one more treatment before doing the bone marrow transplant (BMT) and Gary immediately spoke up and said, "I had my answer to that before walking in the door.... I don't want another treatment!" The doctor smiled and said he understood. So, the plan now is to let Gary rest and recuperate for a few weeks. He will start screening for the BMT on the 20th. If all goes well and he is cleared, then they will start harvesting his cells the first week of December. This is not going to be an easy time for Gary, so we are relieved that he will be able to rest and not have to go through another Methotrexate treatment. Please pray:

• That the damage that has been done to Gary's kidneys, will not be permanent.
• That Gary will be able to be cleared for the transplant.
• That he will gain his strength and be in good health to prepare for the transplant.
• That I, as his caregiver, will stay healthy and strong both physically and emotionally.
• For our daughter Sandra as she is away from her school and friends during this time.
• For our older children, Rebecca and Brian and other family members who are unable to be near us during this time.

I want to thank those of you who take the time to write emails, cards and other comments. I am not always able to respond right away, but we really appreciate your thoughts and encouraging words! It would be so much harder to go through this without the knowledge that we have so many praying for us.

NOVEMBER 3

We enjoyed our day away from the hospital, although, I still had to get up early to get medicine they wanted Gary to be on today. One day's worth.... $400! Gary has slept alot today and just rested. The Lord blessed with cards in the mail, phone calls, comments on Facebook and emails. We appreciate the prayers and encouraging words. It means alot to us.

NOVEMBER 2 - part 2

Gary was able to leave the hospital tonight! The levels had come down to an acceptable level so they let him go. He is thrilled to be home and sleeping in his own bed. Because they schedule his treatments ahead of time, they have him down to come back in on Wednesday to start cycle #4. We will be calling the doctor in the morning, because there is no way Gary will want to start all over again in three days. Thank you for your prayers for Gary and our family. Words just can't describe what a blessing it is to know so many are praying for us!

OCEANS WILL PART

This song by Hillsong, was a special blessing to me today. I wanted to share it with you as well. Whatever happens in my life, I want God's will to be done.

NOVEMBER 2

In case some of you are checking out the blog early.... pray that Gary's levels will improve by 3pm today, as they have ordered an extra blood test. His levels were down this morning and close enough that it is possible they will be at the acceptable rate for Gary to be able to go home this afternoon.

NOVEMBER 1

Gary called me early this morning asking if I would bring him breakfast. I was thrilled that he felt like eating! He wanted eggs and rice (hard to get the Filipino out of us). So, I rushed up with his order. He had a very hard night and emotionally, it just about did him in. He wanted me to stay the night tonight with him, so I left for awhile this afternoon to check in with Sandra and cook some chicken adobo (another Philippine favorite) for her. Gary felt better stomach wise today and even ate some of the adobo I brought up for him tonight. His MTX did not move, still at .5. His CR moved very little to 2.4. This has been a very hard 10 days for Gary. I will not go into detail all that he has experienced, but it would be enough to break any man. His spirits are better this evening, and hopefully his levels will have improved drastically tomorrow. Thank you so much for your prayers!

OCTOBER 31

Gary was better today, but not completely over the nausea. He was able to eat a small bowl of oatmeal this morning, a frappuccino this afternoon and ordered scrambled eggs for this evening, but now too nauseous to eat. They just came in and administered his anti-nausea drug, so maybe that will help. The nutritionist is concerned that he has not eaten since last Thursday, so right now, they don't care what he feels like eating... just anything to get some calories in. He needs to put in at least 400 calories a day for his brain and lungs. His MTX level is .5 and CR 2.8. They are both going down but doctors think he will be in hospital for at least 2 more days. Even small improvements can be encouraging. Seeing him awake with the TV on this morning when I arrived and being able to take a walk and sit outside on a terrace with him this afternoon may be little things, but they show that he is slowly getting better. Thank you for your prayers!

WHAT DO YOU SAY?

Recently I had a conversation with my sisters concerning communication. I had mentioned that since we found out Gary had cancer, we have had phone calls, cards and emails from friends and relatives we have not heard from in years and yet, those friends or relatives close to us, have not always communicated as much as we thought they would. One sister commented that many times people just don't know what to say. They are afraid to say the wrong thing, so they don't say anything at all. Or they think they have to say something profound or super spiritual. I understand this fully and probably have been guilty of this in the past myself. Yesterday, I was physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted. It is hard to see someone you love suffer and not be able to do anything to help. I wanted someone to talk to, but it was so late and I was afraid to call and wake someone up. To be honest, I would not have known what to say once that phone call was made. I just needed to cry. I arrived home, and in the mailbox were cards in the mail. One was from someone who has known Gary for many years. She wrote,

"I truly don't understand why these horrific physical challenges come to any of us.

I do know they remind us of how important people are to us

- not things of the world -

and how precious and even sometimes fragile our faith is.

We are praying for your healing

and for God to give you peace in your heart and mind

to know God loves you and cares about all you are going through,

for you to hang on to your faith even if it is minute by minute."

That was just what I needed to hear. That when things get rough, it is OK to take it minute by minute! You don't even have to take it day by day! It blessed me to read that she felt Gary was important to them. I am sure that our friend who wrote these words, probably thought they were nothing special, just something she was writing from her heart. Hey! That's it! .... What do you say?.... Say what's on your heart. If you don't know what to say, then just say .... "I don't know what to say". Just hearing that someone is thinking about you can be encouraging and uplifting. We appreciate more than you will ever know the many who communicate to us their thoughts and prayers! We are so blessed!