Living As If

Hi Alex,

I’ve gone public, but I’m sorry to say that I will still be flooding your email inbox as well.  The way I see it, mail is always a good thing.  Know that you don’t need to respond.  I’m just sending the good thoughts your way and being “connected” to you.

I wanted to reply immediately after reading your post, but couldn’t find the words.  My own anger and denial sometimes interfere with a well thought-out reply.  As you need to regroup, so do I.  I started poking around online for information and books.  Do you have the book Cancer: 50 Essential Things To Do?  I have not read it, but it is well received.  It is written by a man who was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1984 and was given 30 days to live by his doctor.  He’s still around and doing well.

The other thing I found was this article on NPR – Laughing Back to Health - http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104139384

Laughing is something you and I have a long history with as is evidenced by the many photos I have in my possession.  I intend to continue with this tradition starting now as I share with you a minor embarrassment – of which you know I have experienced many.  Last night, as I was getting ready for bed, I brushed my teeth and then went to close the living room window.  As I was closing the window, I yawned.  Ian was standing near me and I noticed he was looking at my shirt.  I looked down at my shirt and saw the wet spot he was looking at.  Alarmed, I asked, “Did I drool on myself?!”  Ian said, “No you came into the room with that.”  I thought, oh, it must have dripped off my toothbrush, phew, I didn’t drool on myself – but really, phew?  Phew what?  I still had to ask if I drooled on myself, like it was plausible.  And, and I had to ask!  Why?  Because I didn’t feel it dribble out of my mouth?  Anyway, Ian went on to say that it wasn’t the first time that day that I had gotten something on my shirt, which is true.  Earlier I had splattered tomato sauce on my shirt.  Heck, I get something on my shirt just about every day!  Food, drool, spit-up, dirt…  So what I’m really trying to say is, that when you ask us to visualize you battling dentures, I can do that, but not without picturing me sitting across from you in my bib. 

I love you, Alex.  Keep on surrounding yourself with positive thoughts, stories and images.  Live “as if” and it will become your reality. 

Capital sized XOXOXOXO