A gypsy scribbler's musings & ruminations
In this cancer-recovery process, I have sometimes wondered which milestone to keep in sight. June 5th 2017 = you have cancer. Mind-altering news.July 18th 2017 = first surgery to remove my thyroid and a handful of lymph nodes. Life-changing experience.March 19th 2018 = second surgery to remove leftover lymph that was still cancerous. Will it... Continue Reading →
Last Tuesday was the six-month anniversary of my second surgery. While it may not sound as momentous an occasion as the anniversary of my first surgery or even of my diagnosis, I have been looking forward to it for ... well ... six months. Once again, in honor of the event, I kept another date... Continue Reading →
"I'm dying," said I. "I know. How far would you go?" said she. "How far would you go to be free?" "Free of the thing that is killing me? Cut it out! Carve and slice, burn and dice, poison it until it disappears. I surrender to the physician's knife and knowledge. In short: do whatever... Continue Reading →
Two things, I can do, At three I am an expert: Moving, Recovering from surgery, and Picking up the pieces of a broken heart. It is remarkable to me how similar physical recovery is to emotional recovery. Life post neck surgery is a whole lot like life post heartbreak. There's that initial period of intense... Continue Reading →
A couple weeks ago, I took a largish group of high school students to Kenya for a choir festival. Wait ... this sounds familiar ... wasn't it India? True, I did recently get back from a choir festival in India. That trip was a small group of middle school students heading to AMIS. This trip... Continue Reading →
India: the most familiar place I had never been. Three weeks ago, I took a group of middle school students to an AMIS Honor Choir festival hosted by the American International School of Chennai. We left on a Tuesday and landed on a Wednesday morning. In the 45-minute ride from the airport to the school... Continue Reading →
He had a wand. A singing wand that could see through skin. He touched the skin and frowned: a black spot upon the grey, fuzzy picture of health. A hard image, round and empty. Suspicious. The wizard drew his lines (X marks the spot) and said, "Come again next week. There is another wizard needed here." ... Continue Reading →
This post is less of a reflection and more of an update for those who have been walking this cancer road with me long-distance. Thursday the 18th marked exactly six months since surgery. In honor of the occasion, I got my blood tested and kept a Friday-morning date with my favorite radiologist, Dr. Berk --... Continue Reading →
“Hey there! How are you?” Charlotte welcomed me into the office. It was the day before school let out for the holiday and I was there to wrap up loose ends. “Hi! I’m doing well, thanks. Much better than a couple weeks ago. The kidney stone made for a rough two weeks. And how are... Continue Reading →
June 30th, 2010 - northwest Vancouver Island, Canada I woke to a splash and a shout. Confused, I sat up and strained my senses beyond my sleeping bag. The sound of lapping water was close - much closer than it should be. Was it at the tent? Someone was outside and moving around - another... Continue Reading →
Of Wonders & Wanders 
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