It’s been quite awhile since I’ve written.  I know the picture shows up at the beginning of the post, so I’ll talk about our sad news first.  We made the extremely difficult decision to put our sweet Angel to sleep last Sunday.  It had become abundantly clear that she was suffering, though she never complained even when she was hurting and unable to walk or stand.  She lived into her 14th year and was, seriously, the best dog ever!  She was a joy and a true blessing to us all.  Her absence is an enormous silence and void in our lives.  Tom and I cried and sobbed until no more tears would come.  It’s really the only bad part of loving a dog; knowing that because of the pampered life we give them, they rarely die of natural causes.  We have to make the decision.  The terrible, awful, gut-wrenching decision.  In the end, their eyes let us know that the suffering has conquered the happy.  I loved that dog so very much.  I don’t know where the spirit of a dog goes when they die, but I hope and pray that its the same place people go!  So, we have declared October 11th as “Celebrate Angel Day”.  Rather than dwelling on her passing, we will celebrate her life and all the amazing stories we lived together.  Never, ever “just a dog”.

The picture I chose to put in the “I had a wonderful time” frame has rainbows dancing on her fur.  We have crystals hanging in several of our windows and occasionally when the sun hits them just right, a roomful of little dancing rainbows will appear.  My Mom was the one who started doing that so they (the rainbows) always remind us of her. My heartfelt wish is that Mom and Angel are having a wonderful time together in heaven, moving freely and dancing about.

Now, on to the good news.  Great news, even.  I had my first post-surgical CT scan of the chest, abdomen and pelvis and it came back all clear!  I believe the term is NED (No Evidence of Disease).  It has been five months since the tumor was removed and almost three months since I started the Gleevec.  I’m also very grateful to say that my blood work is all within the normal range, so my immune system and liver seem to be holding strong.  I continue to tolerate the drug well  and have minimal side effects.  I believe the best term to use here is Halleluiah!!

That’s about it in a nutshell.  I’m off to make a big batch of chili for supper. We are having such a beautiful Fall here in the Hills.  The colors are amazing, the air is crisp and the night sky is full of bright, twinkling stars.  Breathe deep and cherish life.

“I never behold them (the heavens filled with stars) that I do not feel I am looking into the face of God. I can see how it might be possible for a man to look down upon the earth and be an atheist, but I cannot conceive how he could look up into the heavens and say there is no God.” – Abraham Lincoln