One Year Cancer Free

Friends,

Hope all is well with you and yours. The seasons have changed since I last posted on here and we are looking forward to the Holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Today is just another block on the calendar page for many. For me, it is more important than my birthday, or anniversary or any other special event that has been a part of my journey for 56+ years. Today I celebrate being cancer free for one year. One year ago, right now, I was in surgery, the first steps of a journey that I could not have imagined. Friends (like family) were there with me, encouraging me, praying for me, reassuring me that all would be well ~ they were right. Remembering it all now brings me to tears but they are good tears, it was a time that God showed his love and his mercy and his face to me in so many ways, with so many people. I have re-read this blog a few times and I would encourage you who have walked with me this past year to read it again too. What a great testimony to the power of God. I will not revisit it all on here, I just want you to know what is happening in my life one year later.......... last week I was at the coast with my children and grandchildren fishing. There were no catheters or bathroom runs every 15 minutes like last year. It was great. I didn't catch the biggest nor the most fish but I was there! Life has not been perfect for the past year but IT HAS BEEN !!! Everyday another man is diagnosed with prostate cancer, another man dies from this cancer, another family is devastated. I am blessed, I am one of the "good" statistics. It is time on this journey to say some thank yous. As I read through this blog, that was the one thing I seemed to overlook the most. First of all, I thank GOD for his blessings on me. God has shown up and showed off in so many ways. My family, Brenda did things I would have never guessed she was capable of, perhaps things she never dreamed she was capable of. As much as she loves her sleeep, she spent many a sleepless night to honor her vows, keep her committments and provide the care I needed when I needed it. My sons and their families. They spent Thanksgiving last year in the hospital with me, all of them. Their love and support have meant so much. Moma and Daddy, both dealing with their own medical issues, praying for me everyday, calling often and of course, doing what parents do best, worry about their babies. My brother Dean and wife Rita. They too were miles away in Texas but never failed to call and offer their support and love. Caught in the middle with his Daddy and his brother both in the hospital, Dean did what he thought was best for us all and held our family together when it looked like we were all gonna crumble. My "Florida" family of inlaws who kept the phone lines busy and stood ready to come if asked to do whatever it would have taken to make things better. For my friends, friends like family who were there to feed me ice chips, help in the house when I was weak, keep me company in the hospital, take care of our house, take care of my wife, do the things that only a true friend would do. Dr. Stewart Polsky, the man who literally saved my life. The one thing I asked of him in the beginning was if he would be with me through the whole process. He said he would be my guy through it all.....he was! He dealt with dozen of questions, multiple visits before and after surgery and even understood the tears when it seemed things were almost more than we could bear. He said there would come a better time...that time has arrived. Nicole, Doc's "Gal Friday" who was there for every visit and became not only my primary care giver and doc's assistant for all those visits but she is a person I have come to call my friend. I suspect there are others who have given, some I can't remember, others who never wanted me to know. All I can say now is THANK YOU.

Doctors and medicine are wonderful and powerful things. The support of family and friends is immeasurable. The power of faith and prayer is endless. The belief that you will be OK, you will be a survivor, you are on this earth for a reason and an attitude that always sees the glass half full, these are the things that in my opinion make the difference.

Prostate cancer is not a dead end, it is a detour. I have been on a detour for a year but I can see the main road again. I still have to cath myself each week, I still take medicines but I see a road ahead, not perfectly straight or without curves or potholes, but a road that leads to a much better place.

Brothers, get yourselves checked, know your scores, know your body, arm yourself with knowledge of this disease. Prepare yourself for battle and go into it with the attitude that defeat is not an options. Embrace your family and friends and even more, let them embrace you. Believe that God created you for a reason, a special purpose. Don't be afraid to cry, don't be afraid to laugh. Don't try to predict the future, look forward to it and wake every day in the awareness that you can make a difference in this world.

I will keep this blog active, I will continue to post from time to time. I will pass along those special moments. If you know of a friend, have a family member who has prostate cancer, tell them about this blog, tell them to call or write me. I love telling my story, our story.

I LOVE YOU ALL and THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART.......

"Thank You Lord for Your Blessings on Me"

Mike Raynor