Dear friends of Margaret,

In keeping with her wishes (really, orders), I am posting only after we get the results of her MRI brain scan. Once again, with the Grace of God, and prayers from so many, her scan was clean—no new cancer growth!

Since my last post 2 months ago, Margaret has done great.  Her physician visits were all positive, and by shear grit she has tolerated the Optune cap and chemotherapy pills.  We had a special trip to Culpepper, VA with two of her college buddies and husbands, and just returned from another Viking cruise from Athens, Greece to Istanbul, Turkey.   I have attached a picture or two from the cruise.

Through it all, she has remained a rock of discipline, good cheer and encouragement to others. 

From my prior posts, or simply your knowing Margaret, you are aware that she HATES it when I gloat about her.  Despite that, and risking our almost  44 years of happy marriage, I have composed a poem about her and it is below.  I never understood poetry, have never been a good writer, and can’t tell if things rhyme or not. Other than that… here goes.

TO MARGE                                          

It’s been almost a year since you first learned

That your life as you know it was about to turn

“You have a brain tumor,” brother John said

That’s why your vision suddenly was shred

The next morning you didn’t recognize me

But the Lord introduced you to Dr. Ghiassi

On Memorial Day Sunday he cut your skull open

And two days later you were home hoping

Hoping and praying that the worst was over

But three days later we heard “glioblastoma”

“It’s not a death sentence”, brother John said

But life as you knew it was flipped on its head.

You could no longer play tennis, jog or read

You couldn’t even tutor which so many kids need

Cooking and baking seemed a lost cause

Most of what you loved to do was put on pause

For the next six weeks at 7 AM

You put on a helmet and took radiation

Each time you finished you came out with a smile

“it was nothing” you said (with uttermost guile)

Your hair fell out, then you shaved your head

Your friends gave you wigs—“looks great” they said

And just when you thought you had hit a lull

You had 36 electrodes glued to your skull.

For 5 days each month, you take a double dose

Of chemotherapy pills that make you morose

You plow through the days because you have a plan

To be normal and happy for our kids and the grands.

There have been many days when I would wonder

How do you put one foot in front of the other?

But now I know that the young girl I married

Was determined to not let this hell get her harried.

You scrub floors, pull weeds and walk five miles a day,

You bake sourdough bread and meals that I slay

You learned Mahjong, you entertain our little tikes

You make many happy with your cinnamon bites

You visit your mom whenever you can

You are always encouraging to those in a jam

Each night you ask “did you have a good day?”

You care for others in a genuine way

Your family and friends have been beyond belief

At making you smile and giving you relief

Without them and our Lord I shutter to dream

Where we would be, how would we seem

So thank you dear Marge for showing us all

How to live and love when thrown a curveball

I pray like the rest for God’s healing touch

But no matter what, I love you so much.

With much love, Ward