Lance Rides in Vancouver

One of my hospital visitors after I was diagnosed in 2004 was my very good friend David from the Queen Charlotte Islands. David is a commercial fisherman, an avid bike racer, and a Tour de France fan. David was there the day I got out of the hospital after my colon surgery and helped me to get home. He and his beautiful wife Sandra have been solid friends and supporters along the whole journey. In those first weeks David brought me two special gifts which have nurtured and sustained me over the past three years. The first was a lovely plush lion, and the second was Lance Armstrong’s book, “It’s Not About the Bike”. The lion, a soft and cuddly symbol of courage, still watches over me from the headboard of my bed and the book has continued to inspire me in many ways… enough even to get me riding a bike again!!

It’s hard to believe it but at the time I hadn’t even heard of Lance Armstrong. Cancer and biking were not even on my radar.

I found Lance’s story to be very powerful, and very well told in his book. Lance’s survival is a source of inspiration to any who are facing an uphill battle in the cancer journey. An excerpt… “I’m asking you now at the outset to put aside your ideas about heroes and miracles, because I’m not storybook material… I’ll give you an example: I’ve read that I flew up the hills and mountains of France. But you don’t fly up a hill. You struggle slowly and painfully up a hill, and maybe, if you work very hard, you get to the top ahead of everybody else. Cancer is like that too. Good, strong people get cancer, and they do all the right things to beat it, and they still die. That is the essential truth that you learn. People die. And after you learn it, all other matters seem irrelevant. They just seem small.”

Lance survived against the odds. Not only did he survive, he thrived. He went on to win seven Tour de France bike races. Today Lance dedicates a significant amount of his time and energy to “LiveStrong” the “Lance Armstrong Foundation” http://www.livestrong.org/. Lance's work continues to raise money for cancer treatment and support and cancer awareness. He’s even raised the awareness to the level of the US Presidential campaign by hosting the “LiveStrong Presidential Cancer Forum”!! Way to go Lance!!
This weekend Lance is in Vancouver riding in the BC Cancer Foundations “Tour of Courage”. http://www.tourofcourage.ca/ Lance is leading a community ride on Sunday to help raise cancer funds in BC. Hopefully I can get out of church in time to watch them ride by (if the preacher is not too long winded!!). Too bad I’m not back up to riding yet… maybe next time I’ll be riding along with him!!

Blessings to all... Rob; in Vancouver

"Anything is possible. You can be told that you have a 90-percent chance or a 50-percent chance or a 1-percent chance, but you have to believe, and you have to fight." Lance Armstrong

LIVESTRONG LIVE

What can we say... Thanks Lance!

The Mysterious Ticking Noise - Potter Puppet Pals

For your Saturday enjoyment!
Rob...

August 31, 1997 Princess Diana... Dead at 36.

Princess Diana died on August 31, 1997. She was 36 years old. Today we mark the 10-year anniversary of that tragic day. I remember it well. I was 39 years old and living in Prince Rupert, BC.

Elton John modified the song “A Candle in the Wind” and sang it at her funeral as a personal tribute. A portion of "England's Rose"...

Goodbye England's rose;
may you ever grow in our hearts.
You were the grace that placed itself
where lives were torn apart.
You called out to our country,
and you whispered to those in pain.
Now you belong to heaven,
and the stars spell out your name.

And it seems to me you lived your life
like a candle in the wind:
never fading with the sunset
when the rain set in.
And your footsteps will always fall here,
along England's greenest hills;
your candle's burned out long before
your legend ever will…---Elton John/Bernie Taupin

Part of what I’ve enjoyed in writing this journal is marking the significant milestones that have occurred during my lifetime. This was definitely another big one. There are numerous video’s on the “net” paying tribute to Diana including many to the music “England’s Rose” sung by Elton John. The one I've posted today is to the Simon and Garfunkel song, “The Sounds of Silence”. I found the beautiful pictures of Diana juxtaposed with the lyrics of silence and darkness to be very moving. Diana knew the meaning of darkness and her vulnerability made her more accessible to us all.

Take some time to remember Diana today.

TTFN… Rob; in Vancouver

"Above all we give thanks for the life of a woman I am so proud to be able to call my sister, the unique, the complex, the extraordinary and irreplaceable Diana whose beauty, both internal and external, will never be extinguished from our minds." Charles, Earl Spencer

Princess Diana - A Tribute

Elvis Rocks Vancouver: August 31, 1957

Elvis only performed three concerts outside of the United States, Ottawa, Toronto, and Vancouver. Vancouver was the last of these, 50 years ago today! Here’s a brief account from a Vancouver history page…

August 31, 1957: Elvis Presley performed one song at a packed Empire Stadium, left the stage when fans begin to battle with police. He returned to sing four more songs, none of which could be heard over the screaming. The next day, Presley's manager, Colonel Tom Parker, happily read aloud to the media a local newspaper account of the riot.


The concert was cut short because of fans rushing the stage. The critics were not yet at a point of appreciating Rock & Roll music. Vancouver Province music critic Ida Halpern wrote that Elvis's performance was "an artificial and unhealthy exploitation of the enthusiasm of youth's body and mind . . . One could call it subsidized sex."

Tonight at the PNE they are having an "Elvis Concert" to commemorate the ocassion. There will be Elvis impersonators, the orignal MC, Red Robinson, and some Elvis friends to share memories. Should be fun!

I was in Fayetteville, Arkansas at the time, still enjoying the peace and security of Mom’s belly! Still 5 weeks from launch date! Little did I know what wild things were going on in the world into which I was about to arrive!!

Pushing 50… Rob; in Vancouver

“We were caught up in the crowd that jumped the wall and ran on to the field with thousands of other screaming, out-of-control fans.” Sharon Jones

Back in the Saddle!!

Well this stage of the journey is finally winding down. I’ve got a couple more days of Xeloda (oral chemo… yeecchh!) left and then I’m done!! Yeah! It’s been almost six months since my last surgery and RFA procedure. Things are looking real good. Latest scans were clear. Tumor markers are way down. Bloodwork looks good. All systems are “go” for returning to the land of the living!

Not wanting to let any more moss gather… I’m back in the pulpit this Sunday, September 2nd. I’ve been spending a few days at the church for the last couple of weeks. I performed a marriage service last week and have been getting geared up to start back.

During the couple of days I’ve been working over the last few weeks I’ve been struck with how much I love my life and my vocation! I look forward to getting back into the rhythm of congregational life and the ebb and flow of the church seasons. I especially look forward to getting to know the wonderful folks at St. Stephen’s and spending some “quality time” with them all!!

Yes… it is so very good to be alive!!

I expect that my posting to “A Cancer Journal” will taper off quite a bit now. I’ll post a periodic note of interest and the occasional health update as scan results come in, but mostly I’ll be back to life as usual, and that doesn’t leave much time for “blogging”.

This blog has been lots of fun for me. And very helpful in terms of sharing some of my thoughts and feelings over the past few years. Thank you to all who have visited me here. During long weeks of being mostly “house bound” you have helped me to know that I am not alone. God bless you all!

Peace and blessings… Rob; in Vancouver

"The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." Frederick Buechner

St. Augustine, Florida – 442 Years Old

Today is the feast day of St. Augustine of Hippo (North Africa). St. Augustine died on August 28, 430 AD. Thus the feast. On “The Feast of St. Augustine”, August 28, 1565, Spanish explorer Pedro Menéndez de Avilés sighted land while cruising the waters off eastern Florida. He subsequently named the settlement they founded, St. Augustine, in honor of Augustine. I guess if they had been a day earlier they might have named the new town St. Monica, in honor of Augustine’s mother’s feast day! Anyways... it was August 28th and Augustine got the nod. St. Augustine has survived the years and is now known as “the oldest continuously occupied European-established city in the continental United States”.

St. Augustine has had a very colorful history. The French, Spanish, and British fought up and down the Florida coast during the colonial period. The Brits finally secured a claim after the Treaty of Paris in 1763. British tenure would be short lived as St. Augustine returned to Spanish control after the American War of Independence. St. Augustine finally came under American control in 1821 when Florida became an American territory.

The railroad came to St. Augustine in the late 19th century. Industrialist and railway magnate Henry Flagler transformed the town into a winter resort for wealthy folks wanting to escape the northern cold. The architecture of this period is truly breathtaking as witnessed by Flagler college and a number of other buildings.

My Mom and Dad have spent the winter in St. Augustine for the past 15 years. Lucky them! It is a great community and has really become a home to them. I like to visit them there as often as possible. Lately I’ve been making it down twice each winter, once in November before the season of Advent begins and again in February before Lent. These are wonderful holidays filled with golf and fun times with Mom & Dad and their wide circle of wild friends. I’ll be down there for about 10 days this November. Looking forward to it!!

TTFN… Rob; in Vancouver

“O Lord, help me to be pure... but not yet.” Saint Augustine

Down in the River to Pray

 Another version, go here... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1FQqSGxBso

“Dx” Day: August 23, 2004

My journey with this beast began three years ago today. It was a Monday morning. I had just returned from a two-week holiday in Oliver where I enjoyed great golf and some fun winery tours with Pam and good friends from Highlands Church. I was scheduled for a colonoscopy to investigate the cause of some periodic blood in my stool. The colonoscopy was done in the “Day Surgery” suite at Lion’s Gate Hospital in North Vancouver. I was processed, prepped, sedated, and scoped in a little over two hours. I only remember waking up in the recovery room afterwards. By that time Dr. Haniuk, the GI doctor who’d done the colonoscopy, had already gotten in touch with Dr. Chang, the on-call emergency surgeon for the day, and the clinic had called Pam who was now at my bedside.

Dr. Haniuk explained that they had discovered a “mass”, about the size of an egg, in the lower reaches of my sigmoid colon. I was a high risk for a bowel obstruction so Dr. Haniuk recommended that I have an emergency colon resection that day since I was already “cleaned out”. Dr. Chang concurred and explained the risks, including the possibility of a colostomy bag and the possibility that there might be nerve damage which could cause impotency. These were two great doctors who were able to collaborate and get things rolling right away.

It was a long day of waiting and wondering. The surgery was completed that same evening. Pretty good response time! On waking up in the recovery room the first person I saw was Leslie, a recovery room nurse from my congregation. Pam joined me shortly afterwards. The good news is that Dr.Chang was able to do a clean resection with a rejoining of the colon to the rectum. He really saved my butt! This thanks to a new “high-tech” stapling device they had to join the severed ends. Fortunately the other risk was avoided as well!!

I spent the next couple of days in the “close observation” suite of the surgical recovery ward. I was on an “epidural” (pain medication delivered to spine) so the pain management was fairly good. Dr. Chang was concerned about the “join” in my colon and I wasn’t to eat for 7-10 days. I stayed in the hospital awaiting biopsy results, undergoing further scans and tests, and slowly recovering. After a couple of days I was visited be Dr. Klimo, the oncologist. He talked to me about some possible chemo options and asked me to see him after I was discharged. Dr. Klimo is another great doctor and I continue to see him. While still in the hospital I was surgically outfitted with a “port-a-cath”, a port inserted in my chest and connected to the “vena cava” for ease of chemo infusions.

I had regular visitors during my whole stay in the hospital. The congregational response was awesome, tons of cards and lots of support for Pam and I and the family. I even had a visit from some of the Henry’s from Port Simpson!

These are just some of the things I remember on this the 3rd Anniversary. Since then it’s been quite a journey!!

Still trekking… Rob; in Vancouver

“I wake each morning with the thrill of expectation and the joy of being alive.And I'm thankful for this day.” Angela L. Wozniak