So here I sit on 5 West in the Ottawa General Hospital, I have 30 ml left in my 1 litre pre-soak before I start my high dose “Mo” – Cyclophosphamide – pause… And now I have started the high dose “Mo”, which will take a little over 2 hours to flow in. As you will see from the pictures I will take, it looks just like a bag of water. But it’s not!!
Had a good chat with my Pharmacist today and he explained that it was very important for me to drink lots and pee lots, as this form of Mo can give my bladder some trouble. So for the next 60 hours I will be drinking lots and peeing every hour or so, day and night. At least that’s the plan. As we were talking about drinking, and he advised that I drink things like Gatorade or milk – as they have ample electrolytes – I started to think about things that you can’t have too much off. For example I have always put water in this category, knowing the you can have too much of it, but always feeling that too much is far better than not enough.
After a quick scan through my brain I have determined that one thing you can’t have too much of isn’t some “thing” at all, it’s not tangible, you can’t really measure it though it would be fun to try, and this thing is definitely what I am most thankful for. The “thing” is Love, the Love in my life. The Love I have to give to others and the amazing Love I get back. It is my greatest gift.
This is a particularly good weekend to think about such things, as most people have an extra day off from work, maybe that was designed to give us extra time to realize and acknowledge the things that we are most thankful for. Whatever the reason I feel this Thanks Giving weekend is a great time to highlight some of the great “things” we have in our lives.
I could make a list and rhyme off… your career, your community, your health, your friends, your parents, your siblings, your children, yourself, all very special gifts. However I feel it is the Love that we have with each of these gifts that make them special and that is the real reason I am thankful for them.
I would like it if you thought about that little list above, expand it if you wish, contract if you wish, but then think through it, and focus on how each of those gifts has influenced your life. I think this weekend is a great weekend to be thankful for the role those gifts play in our lives and I encourage you to think and feel them, and the importance they have in your lives.
You all know about my “day to day” mindset, and while I don’t feel it’s absolutely healthy to live 100% in the moment, I do feel that a healthy dose of “day to day” is the way to go. And a component of that “day to day” approach does involve some urgency if you will, an urgency to enjoy, cherish, and Love every moment of every day. So on this weekend of Giving Thanks I am enjoying, cherishing and Loving my career, my community, my health (especially in it’s faltering state), my friends, my parents, my siblings, and myself.
Thank you for being one of my friends, it is a special gift to be able to share this most personal, challenging, experience with you. Have a great Thanks Giving, and I’ll be back again soon.
Always…
Live Life. Love Life.
Geoff
