Gray days; blue skies

It seems that we do not write much during the first week or so of Ellen’s chemotherapy cycle. She tends to be very tired, and not feeling well. And Luke is busy trying to help her and take care of all the many things that need to be done from house work and yard work to shopping. We are both tired and have little time away from the most basic issues to be writing and in touch with friends.

That is one reason  why all the help from friends is so welcome. There are times when it feels overwhelming and hard to keep up with even the most basic things. And the help with meals, cleaning, gardening and so many other things is so appreciated and such a lovely demonstration of how much the community of friends and family is really the center of our lives.

We have had an unusually cold Spring. Days of lowering and very dark clouds; great squalls of snow driven by blasts of icy wind, freezing rain, cold nights, more snow, more rain, more wind. After her most recent treatment on May 15, Ellen had some hard days, feeling unwell, very tired, not able to get out of bed much. This time around it seems the down days lasted a bit longer and were accompanied by changes in taste buds that made most food unappetizing and hard for her to eat.

Ellen’s appetite is back now, but she again lost weight. And it seems that she is not gaining back the weight during the better days toward the end of her cycle that she loses during the hard days. So the tendency is weight loss.

So there were some hard days if not feeling well and trying to stay warm as the wind howled and the snow fell outside. And on those hard cold days, it meant so much to have the support and help of so many of you. A warm meal is a cold night is such a demonstration of the ties of friendship and mutual support and love that sustain us. Ellen is fully occupied in getting well. And Luke is fully occupied in supporting Ellen, dealing with housework, shopping, yard work, paper work

Yesterday the sky was blue and the sunshine was warm. We took a lovely walk in the hills. The sage is brilliant green and blue and there is new snow on the peaks.

Ellen wound up walking 10.3 kilometers. And enjoying a couple of visits from friends. And taking some superb naps in the sunshine.

The flowers are out; it promises to be a stunning year for wildflowers.

We cannot say enough about all of you who are staying engaged and helping to support Ellen week after week. Tusind tak, a thousand thanks, as they say in Danish.

We are sorry to be missing the soccer games that are so exciting and enjoyable for our godson Gregory Blanco. But we will start going when things allow us to.

Gregory’s sister Maria Jose is going to Europe with her school trip in two weeks and she and Ellen have been poring over guide books and maps and the internet and learning about the places she is going. How exciting!