Michaels Arms

I think Michael's chubby little arms look like corn dogs without the stick. They make me hungry.

That blasted pride again...

Someone once told me that some cancers are easy to remove- they come out cleanly like a hard- boiled egg out of a shell. THen there are others that are more like removing cooked egg from hair- these are very difficult and perhaps impossible to remove completely, apart from removing the whole organ.

I am so proud. Not the good kind of proud, the kind that recognizes dignity in myself and others and shrinks away from anything that is not consistent with that. Not that kind. I'm just your garden variety kind of pride. I don't like to be wrong. I'm argumentative and stubborn. I'm excessively concerned about others opinions of me. But I don't think I'm ever going to make much headway with these parts of myself- a priest told me not to expect much more than a 5% improvement over a 10 year period. So seeing as I can't remove this organ, I'm just going to have to accept that, if pride was a cancer, I'd be terminal (does that sound crass? It's not meant to).

It's so good to know that God is not discouraged by my mistakes and shortcomings; in fact he expects more failure from me than I expect of myself. It's nice to have someone like that in your life.

Budget...

Well, I managed to escape getting a pink slip this year, despite the fact that I am one of the newer highers at school. Friday was "Support Your School" day and everyone was supposed to wear pink to protest education budget cuts. Contrary to popular belief, pink slips are not pink. They are white. But my brother- in- law informs me that green cards aren't actually green either; they're pink.

Monica Update

FOr those of you not following Monica's progress, she is really in need of your prayers and any sacrifices you can send her way. The CT scan showed that all tumors have grown, as well as new ones starting in her lungs, liver and spine. THey will try her on a new medicine on Monday that has shown some progress in a few angiosarcoma patients.

It is so amazing to me to think what she must be going through right now. I am resolved that every worried thought I have for her I will turn into a prayer. The one that comes to mind is Mother Teresas prayer- "Mary, mother of Jesus, be a mother to me now".

Monica has her CT scan tomorrow- it will let her know whether or not this new medicine is working. If not, they're not sure what to do next.
Please pray for her, and offer up any small sacrifices you can make.