A STORM IS COMING!

When you live on the Gulf Coast, the warning of a coming storm is fairly frequent...but it is just as often impotent. Being this close to the origin of landfall, things can change pretty quickly. However, the change can be for the bad as well as the good: the storm may miss you when you think it's coming right at you OR it can hit you when you thought it wouldn't and you're unprepared. Today, Hermine missed us. Thank you, Lord! It was a hot sunny day on the Emerald Coast.

For that I am thankful because my plate is still full otherwise. Two days ago I received my second regimen of chemotherapy and I'm now halfway through. The infusion session itself is rather boring in & of itself. The 4-hour period of sitting in a BIG recliner/rocker hooked up to an IV is broken only by several necessary trips to the bathroom and any activities I bring to amuse. I had thought ahead of time to include my lunch and a couple of drinks to refresh myself and my computer and I-phone to entertain me. The time passed fairly quickly and it seemed I was not any worse for the time I spent having poison poured into me.

And yet, my physical storm still rages around me. I am, however, comforted by the lyrics of the contemporary Christian song popular now:

"In the eye of the storm,

You remain in control.

In the middle of the war,

You guard my soul.

You alone are the anchor

When my sails are torn.

Your love surrounds me

In the eye of the storm."

The 'eye of the storm' is just a break or lull from the fury of the wind and rain that is still swirling just out of reach of me. Although there is peace in the 'eye', it is understood that the time is a short span and that it should be spent gathering supplies or finding a better place of refuge; a time to be proactive concerning safety.

My 'eye of the storm' is spent gathering energy by eating healthily and exercising when I can. There are unstressful activities I like to participate in: a lace knitting class I want to finish so my next infusion session can be spent knitting a gift; time praying for those God brings to mind or the ones who are praying for me; new books on Christian life; and I've started reading the Sue Grafton alphabet mystery books all over again. All the while my body is fighting! Fighting the cancer, fighting against bacteria in the air around me, fighting the poison itself that claims it will heal my body. But fighting takes energy so I must gather it where I can.

My husband, Dave, has learned to cook again. It has helped that we are eating simply now. There are no sauces or multiple ingredients to make an entree on our diet. We have grilled chicken breast, or chicken sausage or hamburgers cooked on the griddle. Sometimes we have oven-roasted sweet potato bites with coconut oil but more often microwave baked sweet potatoes accompanied by microwaved frozen veggies or a lettuce salad with veggies. Simple yet satisfying fare!

The doctor checked me over before this last infusion session and declared that I was much more fit than some 40 year old women who he had seen. I am thankful for the few months of healthy eating that has helped me get to this place!

We don't eat sweet desserts because sugar is cancer food! So, I stay as far from it as possible. I did, however, find a banana cream pie to try out this week (see link below for the recipe). This pie is sweetened with maple syrup (or honey) and is simply what the name says: bananas and cream.  It was wonderful! And, although my husband was begging for seconds, I was well satiated with a slim slice that gave me the sweetness I think is necessary after a savory meal. I find it's good to have some completeness in one's life!

Banana Cream Pie 

Our grandsons remain a constant source of joy and entertainment in my life. They are now old enough not to require as much care and attention as they needed in the past. This makes it easier to help relieve Kristi and Matt for their ministry as we came prepared to do here. We were able to get a couple of our old computers working with Windows 10 and the boys come into our living room to play games on them. It is quite a hoot to watch them! Life is always an adventure with the "Tribe of Ruckel".

And so, I gather energy from the lives and love around me, from the friends and family far and near
who support me through prayers and words of care, from my Lord who never leaves me. If you are reading this blog, you are part of my support system and I thank you from the bottom of my heart! While I gather myself in and hunker down with the Lord beside me, you help form the barrier around me that will give additional protection for me to go from the 'eye of the storm' through to the other side to become a survivor.

Be blessed because you are loved!

LADYING FOR SEPTEMBER 2, 2016

You may never know whether or not you impact someone's life--but don't let that keep you from trying.