My last post was about “time” and again today, “time” is on my mind.  For Greg and me, the clock is ticking double-time as days seem to fly between visits to Texas.  The clinical trial which Greg is participating in requires chemo treatment every 28 days at MD Anderson’s facility in Houston.  Due to his compromised immune system and the threat of COVID-19, trial doctors recommend that we drive instead of fly from Charlotte to Houston for these treatments.  So, we have been gone about a week of each month and try to take care of home and family needs when here in NC. 

Greg’s labs at the first of this month indicate that his white blood count had dropped lower, meaning his immune system is weaker, than it was a month ago.  The doctor assured us that it is not unusual for blood counts to fluctuate for the first year or so after CAR-T therapy, but it increases the need for caution especially in the light of COVID-19.  Again, when we went to Levine last Friday for labs, his white blood count was low but had not dropped since earlier in the month.  His next appointment in Houston on 8/31 is for labs, PET scan and port removal.  Please pray with us for good results from all procedures.

In our lives, like everyone else, this year has dealt a mountain of new challenges.  But we are reminded of and stand firmly on the words of Proverbs 3 that say, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path”.  We are so grateful that God already knows what the path holds for us and is safely guiding us through all of life’s journey.  We trust Him completely.

Thoughts for the day:
Yes, the passing of time is an issue for all of us as we continue to face unexpected challenges in the year 2020.  It reminds me of a song by the Steve Miller Band which was released shortly after my high school graduation in 1975.  That song was “Fly Like An Eagle” and it addressed revolution and the social injustices of that time in history. 

When I think back to that decade, so very much has changed.  Our phones were not carried in pockets or purses, but sat on tables, hung on kitchen walls or in square booths on street corners.  We wore mood rings, hip-huggers and bellbottoms.  We listened to Disco music on 8-track tapes and kids did homework with pencils and paper.  It was the beginning of the personal computer era with homebuilt kits and the early rise of a man named Steve Jobs.  We saw classmates ship out to Vietnam and sometimes return in a box or not at all.  We sat in long lines at gas (service) stations, sometimes overnight, on designated dates according to our license plate number, just for a few rationed gallons of gas.  And all around us there was civil unrest and social revolution.

Yes, phones, fashion, and technology have definitely changed since the 1970s.  Today we find ourselves waiting in lines for masks, hand sanitizer and toilet paper instead of gas, and most of us are not allowed to go to school or work because of the COVID-19 pandemic.  But some things in our world have not changed at all...the news media is still broadcasting the casualties of war, civil unrest and social revolution happening all around us.  And as the song says, we would still love to “fly like an eagle” to a time and place where all babies have full bellies; children everywhere have shoes, clothes and parents who love them; and everyone, everywhere has a safe home to go to at the end of each day.

The lyrics talk about the needs of the day, the revolution, and even a solution.  In the 1970s, so many people “flew” on the wings of violence, protests, drug use, and sexual freedom in their attempt to solve or escape the needs of society.  But here we are today, still facing the same old issues.   Time and mankind’s plans will not fix these problems.  As long as there are people on this earth, social injustice will remain in one form or another and mankind will continue to suffer in one way or another.  Why?  Because at the bottom of mankind’s heart is a root of selfishness.  My mama called it “me-itis”, meaning life is all about me and what I want.  I pray that soon, very soon, eyes will be opened to the truth that life is not about us but about the one who created us and created this world that we live in.   God, alone, is the solution to all of life’s problems and He has created a place where there is no suffering, unrest or injustice.  He gave us an instruction manual that describes His plan for mankind.  Join me in praying for our fellow citizens of this world to have eyes and ears opened to the truth, to believe in Him, and to follow His guidelines for loving one another.  TIME IS SLIPPIN’, SLIPPIN’, SLIPPIN’ INTO THE FUTURE.

Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'
Into the future
Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'
Into the future

I wanna fly like an eagle
To the sea
Fly like an eagle
Let my spirit carry me
I want to fly like an eagle
'Till I'm free
Oh, Lord, through the revolution

Feed the babies
Who don't have enough to eat
Shoe the children
With no shoes on their feet
House the people
Livin' in the street
Oh, oh, there's a solution

I want to fly like an eagle
To the sea
Fly like an eagle
Let my spirit carry me
I want to fly like an eagle
'Till I'm free
Fly through the revolution

Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'
Into the future
Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'
Into the future
Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'
Into the future
Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'
Into the future