People have been asking me for an update. The really short version is . . . all is well!!

Although not in active cancer treatment (praise God!), I am taking care of other miscellaneous health things. Because I am not able to have knee surgery due to the blood clots that were in my left lung, next week and then again two weeks later, I am having nerves in both knees burned to lessen the pain. When the doctor tested for the procedure using Novocain, the results were nothing short of amazing. I immediately walked with no pain for the first time in months. Because of the splendid results, the doctors know the knee nerve ablation will be effective and buy me some time until I can safely have knee surgery. Following the ablation, the nerves will grow back in 6-12 months. In the meantime, I have been going to physical therapy in a pool. I thought I wouldn’t like it, but I do! The time flies by, and, surprisingly, I can tell for the next couple days that I had quite the workout.

I also started on the medical cannabis program, which has helped. Because I have absolutely no history with drug use, the pharmacist started me on an extremely low dose – ¼ of a gummy. A gummy is about the size of a stack of three nickels. We learned that I don’t tolerate THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) very well, so we switched formulas to one that has less THC and more CBD (cannabidiol). It helps with sleep and pain management with no hangover effect. By the way – the gummies taste like apple- or tangerine-flavored burnt rope.

The other fun news is that I have started working at the libraries again – VERY part time. It feels SO good to be back.

Having grown up in Duluth, Minnesota, I enjoy being near a large body of water such as Lake Superior, the largest body of fresh water in the world based on the surface area, and the third largest based on volume. In the middle of November, when those northern gales come wailing, the lake can produce waves over 20 feet tall, with a record wave of 28.8 feet! The Gospels tell of some pretty wild storms on the Sea of Galilee.  Mark 4:37 and Luke 8:23 describe the squalls as breaking over the disciples’ boat and nearly swamping it. Matthew calls it a sudden storm or a storm without warning (8:24). 

A number of years ago, I had the opportunity of visiting the Holy Land. On that trip, we had the opportunity of crossing the Sea of Galilee, but our guide absolutely refused to go with us; instead, she rode our tour bus around to the other side. She told us that she had experienced firsthand the fury of the sea, nearly drowning as a result. She explained the dynamics of what causes such storms. The Sea of Galilee is the lowest freshwater lake in the world at almost 700 feet BELOW sea level and is surrounded by hills. On the east side, those hills are almost 2000 feet high. Those hills are the source of cool air which contrasts with the warm, moist air around the sea. That difference causes strong winds to drop to the sea, riling it, even when the skies are clear! Such an event happened as recently as May 2022, causing almost $50 million in damage along the Sea of Galilee.[1]

I used to be terrified of storms, almost to the point of having astraphobia (the extreme fear of thunder and lightning) and lilapsophobia (unhealthy fear of tornadoes or hurricanes). Now, instead, I have a healthy respect. Granted, my knees quake when the tornado sirens wail, but I don’t get fretful during a tornado watch.  To confront my fears, I, along with my son Jason, took a weather watcher training course. We learned the difference between cumulonimbus clouds (thunderclouds) and stratiform or cumuliform clouds (which can look scary but are not dangerous). Our knowledge was tested one late spring day at Valley Fair in Shakopee, Minnesota, when a storm suddenly brewed on the horizon. We realized how bad it was getting and ran for the car as the loud speakers announced the park’s closing. We raced the severe storm home, but my son can tell that part of the story.

The storms of life can happen like this. The sky is clear, and winds calm, perhaps too calm – the calm before the storm. Then the storm hits—a dire diagnosis, the end of a relationship, the loss of a job, an unexpected expense, the death of someone close, and the list is perhaps endless. In the chaos of the storm, I initially tend to get frenetic, heading into unhealthy overdrive, trying to still the storm myself. But that’s not what the Lord wants. He wants us to be still. Although the word still can mean to be motionless, quiet, and free from commotion, it can also mean “settled and unperturbed in mind.”[2] When the Israelites had the Red Sea in front of them and the Egyptian army behind them, Moses reminded the Israelites that the Lord would fight for them. They needed only to be still (Exodus 14:14).  Psalm 37 tells us not only to “be still before the Lord” (v. 7) but to “trust in the Lord” (v. 3), “take delight in the Lord” (v. 4), commit our ways to the Lord (v. 5).  Psalm 46:10 reminds us to be still and know that He is God. We are also told to be still before the Lord in Psalm 37:7. We find many examples in the Psalms of God calming the waters: He stilled the roaring of the seas and their waves in Psalm 65:7. When the waves of the sea mount up, God stills them (Psalm 89:9). In Psalm 107:29, God stilled the storm to a whisper and the waves were hushed.

We are to be still because it is God who calms the storm. The gospels also tell of the calming of storms. In Matthew 8: 26, Jesus rebuked the winds and waves, and it was completely calm. In Mark’s account, Jesus commanded the storm, “Quiet! Be Still!” And, again, it was completely calm. In Luke we are told that after Jesus rebukes the storm, “all was calm” (8: 24).

After a storm, Lake Superior can become beautifully still—the surface unruffled; the air quiet, free of any turbulence. Still. We don’t have to wait until after the storm for the stillness. In the presence of our Lord and Savior, we can be still, calm, serene, peaceful, even in the midst of the worst storm.