Famous and Waiting

William's famous! He was on TV today. One of the Child Life specialists stopped by the room around 10 AM to see if William would like to come to the playroom because 2 NBA basketball players were coming to visit. William was barely waking up and feeling very tired, but that was enough to lure him out of bed.

Matt Barnes, 6' 8", who recently became a free agent from the Orlando Magic, and Hassan Whiteside, 7' 0", a rookie with the Sacramento Kings and no.33 draft pick, (I Googled), came to visit some of the sick kids. Matt Barnes grew up in the Sacramento area and founded the Athletes vs. Cancer foundation last year in memory of his mother who lost her battle with cancer. He is hosting a golf tournament to raise money for cancer research this weekend. KCRA 3 featured the visit and William even had a close up. There are perks with being the only bald kid in the room!!! I tried to find a link, but the website only seems to have the link to Barnes' plug for the golf tournament. So those of you in the Sacramento area, maybe it will be on the 11 PM news too or KQCA my58 at 10PM.

Hassan Whiteside 7 '0" & William Murdock 4' 6"
BTW, his dad was 6' 4" and his mom was 5' 10".
Folks, we may have some Murdock whoppers one day! (Ryan is 6'4" and I'm 5' 11")

Matt Barnes, 6' 8"
Note his head height on the cupboards behind him compared to Hassan.

William continues to be very tired and not want to eat. Like yesterday, he's only had sips of water. Boy, we're going to have some making up to do in the calorie department this weekend. He will receive his last chemo drug this evening and the post hydration throughout the night. We are hoping to be discharged by lunch time tomorrow if all goes well!

The preliminary bone marrow aspiration results came back today. His marrow is still not clear of cancer cells, but it is under 10%. Additional tests are still being done to determine exactly how much is still infected. The good news is that UCSF wants to continue with the schedule for harvest. They feel the number is small enough that the current chemo cycle may kill the remaining cells. Also, as I understand it, if the numbers are small enough, they are able to still harvest the cells and separate out the infected cells to insure a clean harvest sample. Medical knowledge and ability never ceases to amaze me.

Recently, I was going through some of the cards we have received and I have been carrying one with me in my purse the past couple weeks that has brought me strength and comfort. It is from dear friends who went through a trying battle with brain cancer with their teenage son several years ago. (Thanks P&C for your words of comfort!) They included a card with this scripture and saying:

"...Be of good courage and he shall strengthen thine heart..." Psalms 27:14
"Do not look forward to what might happen tomorrow; the same Everlasting Father who cares for you today will take care of you tomorrow and everyday. Either He will shield you from suffering or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace then and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations."

I looked up the scripture to see what the rest of it said. It reads:

"Wait on the Lord: be of good courage and he shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on the Lord." Psalms 27:14

I was struck by the repetition of the counsel to wait. Today I was slightly frustrated that the biopsy results were not perfect. We have been waiting and praying and hoping. We have been gaining courage and strength and optimism. And now we must once again continue to wait. I'm grateful the progress is forward and not backward. Sometimes I wish the progress was faster (I am a sprinter, not a distance runner), but I know refinement takes time. The best things in life take time, hard work, and are worth waiting for, like: homemade bread, a clean house, finding the perfect spouse, physical fitness, raising children, a dream vacation, retirement, butterflies, and healing your child with cancer.

Right now I'm going to take a deep breath and wait.