Take The Next Hill

The war grinds on. We fight each battle for another small patch of land. The engagements can be brutal, but our objective remains clear - Complete Victory.

Next week is another big week. It seems they're all big weeks these days. In fact, each day is a big day. Each hill is steep. Considering where we've been, and the deep darkness we've come from, each day of sunshine feels brighter. The summer heat is warmer. The grass greener.

Next week will be round 4 of chemo. We'll be going back to the drug mix we started with in round 1, which requires a long infusion of a bladder protectant medication before, during and after the chemo. So, likely we'll be admitted. Maybe for just a day. Maybe longer. It's an adventure, right?

Harper says she doesn't really remember much from the 13 day hospitalization that started it all. Not a shocker, really, since her coping mechanism was to shut down emotionally. She slept. She kept her eyes closed. She laid in bed, losing her strength, not eating. She ignored the sounds of mortars falling toward her, desperate to be anywhere else - even if that meant being nowhere.

Today is so very different from then. Today she's active. Not the kid she was before, but she moves. She eats almost constantly (thank you Megace). She smiles, laughs, listens, holds conversations. She'll even talk about the cancer, and the surgery coming up to remove her kidney. Oh, how far we've come. Oh, how many hills we've taken. After initially giving so much to the enemy, we've slogged back, claiming land that is rightfully ours.

After this next chemo round, we'll be scheduling another CT scan to ascertain the status of her tumors. A reconnaissance flight, to spy on the enemy. If they have shrunk, then we'll be moving towards surgery. If they haven't, then we'll be considering options. I have no idea what those are, and I hope we don't have to consider them. I'm hoping we'll see the enemy's supply lines drying up, their resources dwindling - starving, dying off, running low on ammunition.

My big concern is the tumors in the liver. Last scan they hadn't shrunk like the tumor on her kidney or in the lungs. But they had "liquified" in their centers - hopefully a sign of tumor death. If so, hopefully we'll see improvement this time. Hopefully we'll see them retreating.

Her blood counts are good going into next week. Reds, whites and platelets. Her tanks are full. Her arsenal stocked.

So as the sun sets, and the warmer summer heat subsides outside tonight, we plan a relaxing, enjoyable weekend, before we're back to the battle again next week. A bit of leave, so to speak. A 3-day pass as it were. We're tiring a bit, but we know the war is far from over.

Next week, we'll be back on the line, fixed bayonets, taking the next hill.