Thursday, November 25, 2010

A Day of Thanksgiving

D-Day has finally arrived. Even though this whole series of events has come upon us rapidly, it seemed that this day would never come soon enough. The process of discovering the enemy and locating its strongholds, while necessary, wasn’t doing anything to destroy it. Yesterday, Wednesday, November 24th, I began the first steps of treating the cancer by receiving chemotherapy at the cancer clinic in American Fork. The troops have landed on the beach and are storming the enemy positions. My chemo treatment consists of going the cancer clinic every other Wednesday and receiving and infusion of chemicals, into my newly installed Port, over a period of a couple of hours. After that in-clinic treatment, they hook me up to a pump which will administer additional chemicals over the next two days. As a bonus, I have this very stylish fanny pack for lugging around the pump for a couple of days. Friday morning, following the Wednesday treatment, I will return to the clinic to have the pump removed. After being poisoned with the chemo, drugs which attempt to target and kill the quickly dividing cancer cells, the recovery process consists of spending the next 12 days allowing the body to rebuild and regain strength. This cycle will continue for a period of several months, and then testing will be done to determine the effectiveness of the treatments. I don’t really know yet how these treatments will affect me, but just knowing that we’re actually doing something is a huge relief. I met several wonderful people at the cancer clinic yesterday, some of whom are patients also receiving treatments, which encouraged me and gave me hope.

In case you are interested to know more about the port which was installed into my chest, please check out the following link: http://www.powerportadvantage.com/about.html

Today is Thanksgiving and I have much to be thankful for. First, I need to express my profound love and gratitude to Marsha. Without her I don’t know how I would be able to deal with these challenges. While she too is having a difficult time, she has been my rock, an excellent caregiver, a source of strength, and is my eternal friend and companion. 143!

Here is a partial list of the blessings in my life: 4 beautiful, talented, and amazing children. They bring me joy and I am proud of them. My extended family is very supportive, and has given me a legacy of love and faith in God. We live in a wonderful home in an incredible area where neighbors will do anything, and have already done much, to help. I work for an incredible company, Nutraceutical Corporation in Park City. Those I work with are like family. Utah is amazingly beautiful and it offers so many experiences, which I love sharing with my family and friends. The vistas are unbelievable; the colors vivid; the contrast of scenery and climate are incredible. (Marsha – I’m sorry I’m ruining a second straight snowmobile season – I’ll make it up to you)

The greatest blessing in my life is the knowledge that Jesus Christ is my Savior and Redeemer. My faith in Him and God gives me the strength and courage to face any challenge and accept any outcome. All blessings come from God and I am truly blessed. I have a wonderful life.

8 comments:

  1. First comment! Love you Craig. I am grateful to know you and your family. Happy Thanksgiving.

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  2. Hang in there "Flipper"!!!
    Dave

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  3. Craig, you have been, and continue to be, a great inspiration to us. We all think about you every day. You get mentioned in our prayers each night. Thank you for this insight into your life and home.

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  4. Craig, I'm sitting in my living room with tears in my eyes as I read your post. You truly have touched me with your words and attitude. The tribute to your wife and children and the knowledge of the gospel how blessed we all are. I too am grateful for you and your friendship your amazing and I feel blessed to call you family.

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  5. Craig, your post for some reason, reminds me of 2nd Nephi 4. You are one of the most faithful I know, and I love that you do not slacken your strength because of your afflictions. You and your family are so amazing! I feel so blessed to know all of you. Lots of love.

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  6. Craig, when you said that they put the port in your chest, I was thinking Iron Man. Does it glow? All kidding aside, thanks for your testimony. The impact of your family in our lives alone has been significant. You raised the best babysitters our kids ever had. You are in our prayers!

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  7. I loved this post Craig your are amazing!

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  8. Dear Craig -

    It has been a LONG time since I last saw you...I guess it was my last day of work at Nutraceutical a year and a half ago. I spoke on the phone with Josephine last week. She caught me up on her life, and then went on to catch me up on the happenings of people in the office. I asked about you, and that's when Josephine told me the recent news of your health. You have been on my mind ever since. I wish I could find the words to describe how I'm feeling for you and your family. You are one of the BEST people I have ever met. I truly mean that. You always brightened my days around the office, and you have the best attitude about life and the blessings that come with it. I know that your positive attitude coupled with your faith will be great allies in combating this cancer! I found your blog through Josephine's blog, and I'm so thankful that I can stay up to date on your progress. You have been added to my prayer list, Craig. Stay strong!

    Jennie Tranter
    jennieanddevin.blogspot.com

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