Ok - so I'm back at home now and its the night after my nurse came and gave me an IV (Zometa). I've slept for about 24 hours and there are lots of thoughts running around in my head.
Anyway - a little history. I will use first names only to protect their privacy a little bit but really everyone I mention has helped to save my life in some way. They have not only saved it but continue to fuel the energy to help me thrive. I grew up in a bit of a dysfunctional family - though my mother and father loved me, they had issues of their own and were not very healthy. Their health probably helped shape my view on life a bit. Anyway, because I was an only child and could not rely on them as much as I would have liked, I had to turn to my friends - they were extraordinarily important to me and some of them that I know during my teenage years are still my closest friends today and have done more for me in the last few years than I can ever thank them for.
I have tried to live my life through one simple philosophy "Try and leave everyone you encounter in a day a little better off for having interacted with you". My kids have probably heard it more than they would like to as its really the only thing I preach. Its a simple statement and really very easy to do - in the simplest encounters - even buying a coffee somewhere - leave the person behind the counter with a smile. Just say something pleasant with a smile and they'll be happy to have served you. Or the reverse - if I'm serving somebody - leave the other person a little happier for having met you. Its easy to do and if you try it consciously for a month - it'll become a habit and you won't have to try anymore. You'll feel pretty good about yourself too - that's the reward. You'll know that you are creating positive energy in the world and you won't even be trying. It also gets addictive, you'll find the better people feel when they are with you, the more happy you want them to be - Joni and I love it when people feel good around us. I've been told by many that the love and support I receive now is because of the good will we've created over the years - if that's true, then I'm receiving many times more the love and energy than I can be responsible for giving.
Joni in particular - I met her through a friend some 32 years ago. 30 years ago this August we were married. She is now the pillar I rely on every day - she is remarkable - owning a business (SupperWorks), feeling responsible for her employees, franchisees, customers and supporting the kids and me - she embodies the word "Grace". I could not be a more fortunate man. I wish that I had not brought the cancer upon her but it is what it is. The remarkable thing is that 6 months before I was diagnosed with cancer, she was - a tumour on her eye (who had ever heard of that). I was to be the one supporting her - she had to have two surgeries on her eye - to arrest the growth of the tumour, they had to sew a radioactive patch over her eye and then remove it a week later. The procedures went flawlessly thanks to the doctors, nurses and caregivers at Princess Margaret Hospital. Her cancer stopped growing and in fact has started to shrink - we have been told she will be fine but they are going to check her every 6 months. In some strange way, we both think what happened to her was to prepare us for my ordeal (which is every bit her ordeal too). Its late now - more later. Cheers !
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