Underneath It All There Is Gratitude

11 Comments
Checking out the roses along the Camino.
(photo K Burke)

Here I am on the verge of something. I sense a “Y” in the trail coming up soon. We will learn more today with the glimpse that the biopsy. A month it has been, waiting, wondering, worrying… But underneath all this is the sense of gratitude for all the way that I have come and that we have come.

It has been years of work and tears and joy now since I got started on this cancer journey. It has been a crazy long time by any measure. It has been nine years since my diagnosis and seven years since my stage four categorization. Yea, I have been terminal for a long time. Almost like there should be another category just for Felipé.

And all of that joyful living during this time has been gravy really. Millions of dollars of drugs, doctor bill bills, hospital bills have gone by to be part of this. So much support has come from all of you, mountains of it during this time. It has been a crazy trip and long enough to do all kinds of adventures and writing that is all gravy.

So, right here, right now, I got a call from Dr Gold. Just right in the middle of this blog writing changing the whole picture for ten days anyway. Well, the news is that the biopsy was not successful and nothing was learned. But apparently there is also blood test that could give us the information that we are looking for and it’s turn around is ten days. So, I am still going in today to get more blood drawn to make this happen.

Well, well, so it goes. But the fact remains that it is all gravy after a certain point. I am thankful for all this no matter the ups and downs and craziness coming at me. And thank you to you for everything you do in all this.

you are a peach loves, Felipé.

11 thoughts on “Underneath It All There Is Gratitude”

  1. Phil, to be fair, I think we are all terminal from the day we are born.
    Second, you are one of the, if not the most beloved man I have ever met by an enormous amount of people. The definition of charming to the soul. You gotta know that.
    Well, don’t even know if that sounds right, but had to comment on that post…
    Personally, I am not hedging my bets against you in anyway, the “Oracle” of the Caminoheads. I fully expect to have a crazy road trip to a random monastery of some sort not only this summer but the ones after, riding shotgun in your Suburban.
    Love you man.
    Cheers:)
    Ryck.

    1. Ryck ~ Oh Ryck, you are the best! Thank you for all the kind words. Mostly I like the Suburban image, Let’s do that one! And a hug from Rebecca. Merry Christmas buddy! Felipé.

    1. Henriette ~ thanks. Thanks for helping me wait. It has been windy here this AM and the power was blinking and the Wifi was funky so I am still not getting to the blog to say something about yesterday. Now there are patches of blue in the sky. Felipé.x

  4. Gratitude flows from you, even when you are uncertain. I have been holding you in my heart all day, really for the last six years, another 10 days… well, let’s take a walk.
    PS. Being friends with you has changed my life. Love you Felipe.

    1. Catherine ~ thanks for coming by this AM to walk and thanks for the years of friendship. It’s a long road this road. Felipé.x

  5. Thanks for the update, Phil. We will keep praying during this waiting time and beyond.

    Your words on living with gratitude were so true and I think of the Camino lesson of taking one day at a time, one step at a time. I come back to that so often and wish I could live it as well as I did walking to Santiago.

    You have been and continue to be an example to us of faith and hope and courage! We keep praying. We keep walking. We hang on to Jesus. Blessings, Susan

    1. Susan ~ thanks Susan for waiting with me during this process. It is wild and crazy in it’s own way. Yes, our Camino memory is so useful! And of course keeping Jesus close is invaluable. Looking forward to seeing Becky on Monday! Felipé.x

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