ChloeWatts.com

Thursday, July 30 , 2009……The heat is on!

July 30th, 2009 Posted in Daily News Post

No longer do we have to imagine our city at 106 degrees.  The scene from Wizard of Oz rings true this week. The wicked witch has been bombarded with a bucket of water and she’s lamenting, “I’m melting, I’m melting…what a world!!!”…or something like that.  It feels like that here.  Whew!  Even Ivey has had sleepless nights.  She’s even taken a liking to being petted with ice cubes(my crazy invention)

Last Friday was Chloe’s appt with Dr. Norwood (they simply adore each other) to interpret and show us the MRI results.  He said he is most ‘interested’ in something which showed up in the contrast portion which did not appear at the MRI results March 31.   This can indicate, “activity”. The measurement difference with the actual tumor was perhaps only a bit, if at all since no two images can be captured exactly the same way….In other words, if her chin was positioned just a bit different from one MRI to another, then a slight difference in measurement will reflect that. 

This means she will have to have another MRI in 3 mos plus most likely a spine scan as well.  We were hoping to graduate to a 6 month MRI schedule and hear ‘well, NOTHING going on there….”  Dr. N has discussed how “key” her nutrition is , especially now so she won’t be even more delayed than she already is. And, I suspect in case we have to ‘talk’ about any kind of treatment should the next MRI contrast portion show up even brighter than it did this time.

The tumor board was to have met this past Tuesday and Chloe’s case would be discussed at that time with all the specialists as well.

All this sounds serious and it is, but if you could have been a fly on the wall to watch how much Chloe enjoyed this appt, teasing Dr Norwood at every moment….  He even told her to “Stop with the face”, while laughing up a storm.  He is from the South and yes talks with his hands so she began to mimick this by putting her elbow in the air much like he was resting it on the table.    The two of them have their own comedy routine.

Dr. Norwood has upped her dosage of Periactin to stimulate the appetite and wants us to keep ‘talking, talking’ about nutrition  because he is adament about this:  “The tumor is not causing the vomitting.  The two are conincidental as the spinal fluid is able to travel all around and is not blocked there(where the tumor is).” 

As Chloe and I arrived at the hospital last week for this appointment, we had just gotten off the elevator to the Oncology floor.  We noticed an entire family flock around this little boy who was smiling big as you please.  We heard one say to another, “He just had chemo today”.  Big as you please he was smiling.  He has cancer, but cancer we saw that day does in NO way have him.  Our compassion came alive in that moment and Chloe whispered to me, “He had chemo today, did you hear that?”. ” Yes and did you see how happy he looks? I replied back.

The surprise is really none at all.  Our children are the masters at  teaching US.  If only we’d quiet our mind, our technology and our yearning for more to hear the essence of what their will is calling out to teach us.

Time with them while we are all here.

Even though the week has been one of personal challenge, I’ve hugged a new quote in gratitude and blessed its arrival into my life.

It was written by Massahide( 1657-1723) and it goes :

“Barn’s burnt down

now

I can see the Moon”

 

Dana