Almost one full week past surgery date, the news we got today from Dr. Kent is that all three lymph nodes removed for biopsy during the surgery are clear of cancer cells. Although I have to see an oncologist to make the official ruling about chemotherapy, we do not anticipate anything but concurrence from her about this report.
And since all the personality-enhancing drugs are gone from my system, I got my posting privileges back!
You'll be glad to know that I am a newly-certified expert on ridding cats from your hospital room should you have the same feline invasion that I did. I am only dependable (reportedly) to tell half of a great story without interrupting it for a quick nap. I've elevated at least one of my friends to the status of dear friend after subjecting him to a bout of sudden puking.
Wednesday's checkup with Dr. Habash, the plastic surgeon, will hopefully rid me of the drain tube in my largest incision. It will also relieve Lawton of constantly asking "where you goin'?" every time I try to stand up without help. It's a good thing Weebles wobble but they don't fall down!
I'm counting the meals, visits, cards, calls, emails, hugs and prayers...and I truly do have 10,000 reasons to be thankful. About 1,000 of those reasons are bundled up in my stalwart, patient, constant, kind, loving husband. Where, oh where, would I be if life brought me cancer before God brought me you?
I am a day late posting about our day yesterday. Getting the blog updated was NOT our priority yesterday.
Lawton, Jodie, Harry & Carron Brown, Cori & I arrived at the hospital at 5 am. We all got to go back with her while she got her IV, etc. We circled up & Harry said a sweet prayer for Jodie AND all those that would be caring for her during her surgery.
Surgery started about 7:15. Dr. Kent (surgeon) came out about 9:45 to tell us that her part of the surgery was complete. She told us they removed 2 lymph nodes that appear to be clear. They will be sending them in just to double check, We were THRILLED by that news. Even though that's what everyone anticipated, it was a sweet reality! Dr. Habash (plastic surgeon) came out a few minutes before 11 to say that he was finished. He also gave a good report. He was able to complete his reconstruction part of the surgery completely, so she should not have to have any further surgeries done.
Prayers of thanksgiving were said (in the waiting room AND around the country)!
A great crowd of friends & family gathered in the waiting room. Lawton took this picture of the well-wishers.
She was in recovery for about 1.5 hours then on to a room in the Women's Hospital. Doctor came back by to check on Jodie & said things were looking good. Nurses came in each hour to check incisions, change dressing, etc.
Before the day's end, they had her sitting up in a chair for about 30 minutes & she got some a tray of clear liquids & a popsicle (not exactly what she wanted, but it's all they'd give her).
There were some funny moments as she was waking up from anesthesia, but we promised not to share everything...& I'm going to keep my word. Be assured, the ever-present sense of humor was left completely intact.
All in all, we are calling it a good day. And now...let the HEALING begin!!
"Today is the day which the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it."
My team is mighty and led by this angel from Heaven. I'm not often without words except when it comes to expressing my gratitude and love for my "agent".
Surgery time is 7 a.m. and should take 4-5 hours. Menielle will update you from here until I am out from under the influence of personality-enhancing drugs and can be trusted with digital media again!💕
At the top of the list of blessings in my life has been our "falling in love" with the family at Johnsville Church of Christ. It's the little white church in the painting you've all seen. It's situated about halfway between Bluff Dale and Hico. Inside those doors are some of the most genuine, humble, loving, accepting people in God's kingdom.
But what drew us there to begin with was Lawton's chance encounter with Harry & Carron Brown who came to the dealership to buy a car. In hindsight, I don't believe it was a chance encounter but the hand of God guiding our paths to cross. To say we adore them is an understatement. They have become our real family simply by opening their arms, their home and their hearts to us.
If finding these dear friends weren't enough, we are fed some of the best spiritual nurishment we've ever had.
I can't describe Harry Brown's sermons in such a way as to show them to you clearly enough. He's a storyteller. With every word from his mouth, Harry explains Jesus, His plan for us, His sacrifice for us, His love for us. Harry shows us our place in a world we don't understand and can't support. He reminds us of the goal, and he has never sugar-coated how things might be until we reach it.
Our times around the lunch table with Harry & Carron are rich with stories and conversation that reveal a little more of their heart and soul each time we're with them. I'm amazed at the lives they've led and the experiences that lie behind them in their journey to us. Our conversations usually touch on or sometimes center around their musical talent and the love we have in common for sweet harmony and gospel music.
Harry's sermon today was "The Lord Bless You" based on Numbers 6:22-27. I knew when Kenneth Lesley handed me the outline at the front door that this sermon was especially for me. I listened to my dear friend talk about the grace and peace afforded me through the love of God. Before the end of our time together, my church family prayed a special prayer for Lawton, for me and for all the angels and events coming our way this week.
As we held hands at lunch after church and gave thanks for each other and the food before us, I thought with delight of the promise of a home in Heaven, and I thought how wonderful it would be to live close to Harry & Carron.
Friday seemed like a milestone. I straightened my desk and packed what I would need to help me keep up with ongoing projects that can't be put on hold. I hugged the friends I won't see for a few weeks and left the building. It was a relief to know I can focus now on the battle at hand instead of what needs to be organized, scheduled, finished or delegated. I burned up a lot of energy worrying about things that, in reality, will go right on happening in capable hands.
It's hard to know what's the most important thing to chronicle here. You can't begin to imagine the concern and prayers we've been blanketed with over the last few weeks. Cards, hugs, survival stories, prayers from friends & family, prayers from complete strangers (until now), prayers from far away and close to home. If every person who says they are praying for us really does it, I believe the doors to the Throneroom are rattling like there's an earthquake.
I have some of the prettiest new pajamas I've EVER owned (thank you, Cori and Carron). I have a tiny new recliner to sleep in after the hospital stay, and when I came home from running errands today, there were pink ribbons on my neighbors' trees all the way down our block. Pink bands around mailboxes. Pink ribbons on our trees & mailbox. We are indescribably blessed to live among such wonderful people.
My boss, who is first and foremost my dear friend, never blinked at all the times I ducked out for a doctor's appointment...and there have been a ton of them. She trusts me not to leave her hanging, and I work hard to honor her trust! Amy Wood has been my friend for 25 years. We have survived sick babies, ill-timed, stressful moves, deaths, divorces and various insecurities of life. And she will help see me through this one as she has done many times before.
I got my "marching orders" when I registered yesterday at Baylor Scott & White Fort Worth and gave up another couple of vials of blood. I know where to go first and what will happen once I get there (if we can keep our eyes open at the 5 a.m. arrival time). Surgery is set for 7 a.m. and should take about 5 hours between the two surgeons. I'll stay for 2 or 3 nights.
I'm not afraid of the outcome of this ordeal. I dread the journey, but I trust that God's promise to Jacob in Isaiah 43:1-2 is also meant for me.
"But now, thus says the Lord, your Creator, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel, Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn you. For I am the Lord your God..."
My extraordinary husband had a birthday yesterday. He would interject here that he is two years younger than I. He is also many years smarter than I.
Lawton Langford squeezes every drop of joy and happiness out of each day he lives. Lawton is not a worrier (in such a way that you can see it). He had a birthday of sorts several years ago after surviving a heart attack and gaining 5 new plumbing pipes for his wonderful heart. That kind of experience necessitates a new outlook on life, and he embraced it. I truly believe he lives each day the way God directed all of us to live. I also believe that Lawton is not afraid of what any "tomorrow" might bring. I'm inspired by his firm faith and steadfast love.
We (Tommy, Menielle, Us) celebrated Lawton's birthday at a great Habachi restaurant and followed it up with Menielle's pecan pie and some rousing conversation that has become so easy in this blessed friendship we have.
Although the earlier part of the day involved yet another appointment and scan, it was one of the first evenings in weeks without talk of cancer. In Matthew 6:34 we're told not to worry about tomorrow.
Our prayers and yours have been answered in a powerful way. Today's news from the surgeon: NO cancer in the right breast and NO sign of trouble in the lymph nodes that were visible in the MRI. Surgery date to remove the left breast is set for Jan. 24.
Please continue to pray for Dr. Kent and Dr. Habash and all the nurses who will take care of me to make this surgery uneventful! Please keep praying for peace of mind for Lawton and Wade, and please thank our Lord for knitting our wonderful families and precious friends together into this amazing fortress that withstands the forces of doubt and fear.
Thank the Father for my friend Carron Brown whose experience with this terrible disease made her the perfect guide, helping me be calm in the face of so much that is foreign to anyone who has not walked the path and answering the hundreds of questions I have.
And...thank Him for my sister from another mother. Menielle continues to carry me through every minute of this bad dream. I don't know, nor do I want to know, where I'd be without her. Not just today. All my life. No words can describe my debt of love to her.
The verse of the day on my Bible app today was John 15:7. Surely it was directed squarely at us!
"If you abide in Me, and My words, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you."
Since the link to this blog went out offering an avenue for walking this path with us, the flood of love & prayers has warmed us inside and out! Lawton's family has the kind of "tie that binds" equal to my Drapers. They are a praying, singing, loving family, and they are circling the wagons to stand with us.
Here are a couple of really cool bits of information that you may not know.
Lawton's mother, Glenna Hunt Langford, was a Cadet sorority sister at Abilene Christian College of my mother, Mary Draper Fleming.
Lawton's sister, Laurie Langford Bryan, was my roommate at ACU.
Lawton's cousin, Rachelle, married my childhood friend, Charlie Cook (so he's now my cousin :-). Jan and Milburn Cook were friends of our family since before Charlie and I were even born.
Lawton's aunt & uncle James and Janet (Hunt) Wesson live in Snyder. When the Pat Brecheens left Snyder in 1965, the Wesson's bought our house and live there still.
I am especially, sincerely grateful for some very special women who have called to encourage me with their own testimony of healing. Marianna, Montie, Nancy and my new Aunt Janet are living proof that this cancer can be whipped. Their experience is worth pure gold to me.
There are two other women who are living this bad dream with me whose incredible support you just won't believe. More about them later.
Tomorrow I meet with the plastic surgeon who will do the reconstruction part of my surgery. He will order an abdominal scan to be completed next week. After Friday's MRI and this last scan, the two surgeons will put their heads together and pick a surgery date.
I've decided this is a lot like buying/selling a house. The process never moves fast enough to suit me.
Quote of the week: "Drapers are tougher than cancer!" ~ Nancy Turner
