Yesterday I realized that, in the past, my answer to this question depended on the succulence of the turkey breast, the tastiness of the stuffing (my favorite part of the meal) or the flakiness of the pie crust. A well-executed vegetable dish, such as roasted Brussels sprouts, could elevate the meal and the memories to mythic proportions.
Based on these criteria, I would have declared yesterday an unprecedented disaster, the worst Thanksgiving since 1621. The turkey slice was pressed, the vegetables frozen, the potatoes instant and the pumpkin pie crust flakeless. Even if I had an appetite, this meal would have been inedible. After two forced bites of each food, I discovered that my hair was shedding on the plate. That was the only excuse I needed to stop.
Thanksgiving dinner at the City of Hope
(If you click to enlarge and look closely, you can see my shedding hair.)
Thank God, I now have a new set of criteria for answering the question, "How was your Thanksgiving?" By my new standards (including depth and breadth of thanks), I declare Thanksgiving 2007 one of the best ever.
But before I came to this declaration, a few challenges nearly derailed me. First, of course, was my loss of Internet access. Then Cindy called pleading with me to budge on a non-negotiable boundary. I held my ground, but gee whiskers, it was exhausting. And then I woke up on Thanksgiving morning expecting my blood counts to be on the upswing. Instead, my white blood cells had plummeted to .3 and my reds were crying out for a transfusion.
My first thought was, "Why is this happening? Isn't it enough to be recovering from killer chemo?" And then I realized that I had become a little smug about my "attitude of gratitude." Could I still be grateful when the edges appeared to be unraveling?
When I started thinking about everything I have to be thankful for, the answer was yes. Family. An abundance of good friends. The many angels at the City of Hope. The kindness of strangers. Health. (I could keep going and going.)
You may be surprised to see "health" on the thanks list of a cancer patient. The truth is that, except for this mantle cell lymphoma thing, I'm in excellent health. A recent night of eight hours of chemo-prompted throwing up and blood pressure levels near comatose make me really appreciate that good health.
That health was good enough yesterday to enjoy a long visit with George and Cindy and shorter visits with three other friends. I also talked with more than a dozen family members and friends during the day. All of the stimulation called for a 6 pm nap, the first non-Benadryl-induced slumber I've enjoyed since arriving at Hotel Hope.
The magnificent view from my room at City of Hope.
Cindy brought me the beautiful leaves as a Thanksgiving present.
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