40

I turned 40 on Friday.  Above all I am thankful to still be here for my family.  I think when you view every day as a bonus, then it is easier to deal with getting older.  They had a lunch at work and then we had a party in the evening.  It brought back many memories to have my friends and families together.

Health wise, I have been doing fairly good.  Some days are up days, some are down.  In general my pain is somewhat better.  I tried totally going off the painkillers and couldn't totally do it but I am taking less than I was, sometimes just once a day.  My eating has not been as good lately but I am still able to eat some by mouth.  We are going back to Mayos in two weeks for routine scans.  The next medicine was approved by our insurance so I may start on that then, we'll see what the MRI scans show.  The next medicine is something they give by injection once a month,  I might do that alone or in combination with pazoponib which I take every night.  I have been able to go in to work almost full time.  Add that to my time at home thinking and doing email and it exceeds full time.

I heard an account which agrees with my personal experience.  Someone who is dealing with medical issues said he decided to open up and share more about what he was dealing with.  In the last few weeks he has gotten a good report and the doctors don't have an explanation for the improvement.  He credits the prayers of others.  I think I have said this before but we have to be reminded of a simple truth.  Others like to know specifically what they can pray for.  We are rewarded when we have the humility it takes as this is not human nature.  It aligns though with what the Bible teaches us.  It's not always easy to share but we need too.

Please pray that the pain I do have would continue to abate and for wisdom in a couple weeks to make any decisions we need to make.

Derek & Leann