Category Archives: Friendship

Nelson’s journal 6/16/22

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Nelson’s medical team has done a biopsy of the mass growing in his neck, dividing it into nine specimens. They’re looking for the “key” that will unlock the specific mutation of Nelson’s exact cancer. If they can find that, he has a chance of survival—at least for several more years.

Simultaneously, the rabid lung cancer is growing so fast that they decide to do a series of general chemo treatments while waiting to find the mutation. He received the first treatment on June 7, before he left the hospital. It felt good to actually be doing something to fight the cancer directly.

Meanwhile, Nelson felt energetic enough to do something he’s always loved to do: go car shopping. He liked everything about this hunt for a used but good vehicle, and though my car has been available thus far, he knew he and Ann Sophie would need one of their own eventually. Since he’s always been partial to Hondas, he began by looking for a Honda Pilot that would be good in the deep snows of a Minnesota winter.                                      

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June 16, 2022 

5 am.

I’m up here at our little apartment near Mayo. I’m thankful this morning for a lull in the action, for all the people who love me, for money to do all these things with, and that Annso and I never struggle with it or between us.

I’m thankful for our great marriage that’s always such a pleasure to be committed to, for friends who come by and all the gifts people send. For the friends back in YWAM Kona, for the Chemo treatment we have available to us thus far. I’m grateful for a little health coming back day-by-day, that I had a movement today already and it’s only 5:15 am.

I’m thankful for the turn the country is seeming to make toward a conservative leadership, for these “woke” people who act the whole way crazy so good people can see them for what they are and get rid of their influence once and for all.

I’m thankful for how tragedy brings people together and how two of my brothers are coming up to Luke’s place this weekend with maybe DY. I’m thankful that Rob and Ken are coming.

I’m thankful you knew all my days before one of them came to pass, Lord, and that they are written in your book. I’m thankful for Little Will, for Mom and Annso, the little group we have here at this apartment in Rochester day after day.

 

 

I’m thankful for our newly acquired Honda Pilot and how fun it is to see Annso drive it around, an SUV in America, and how nothing like that is running around Europe.

11 pm.

 A good day overall. Lots more to be grateful for as we went along. Got the Pilot (a 2011) fixed up real good with some new brakes, and the dealer buffed out the headlights for me real good. All of it with the alignment diagnosis and hearing that mostly everything has been well-taken-care-of was good news to me.

Just $745 to get that info and the rest of it. No wonder they have the money to give you fancy waters and coffee while you wait for your car to get fixed. I told the service manager about my cancer, because he asked, and I think I made a new friend. He told me he would do whatever he could to help and even asked if I golfed or anything.

Of course I can’t right now, but the people in Minnesota here are some of the nicest people we’ve come across in ages.

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“What does the Lord require of you? To love kindness….” (Micah 6:8)

Nelson’s journal 6/6/22

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It’s been three weeks since Nelson last journaled, 21 days of unexpected change and increasing pain.

He, with Ann Sophie and baby Will, made the quick decision to leave YWAM open-endedly in order to pursue medical care for Nelson. Cousin Luke convinced them to move to Rochester, Minnesota, 80 miles from his home, to be treated at the Mayo Clinic.

On May 16, after packing two suitcases with clothes but taking nothing else, they left their Kona apartment and everything in it, as well as their jobs, their cars, and their history there. The destination was Luke’s house where he generously told them they could stay as long as they wanted.

 

I drove north from Michigan on that same day, meeting them at the Minneapolis airport with Luke. Their planned future had been erased, and whatever was going to replace it was unknown…all of it.

Job one was to find a place to live that was near Mayo’s. Nelson had looked at apartments on his laptop from his Kona hospital bed. 

So we started there, and secured a small two-bedroom apartment to call home—with literally nothing in it. 

 

 

 

 

But Luke came to our rescue yet again, providing multiple pieces of stored furniture he said he didn’t need. We were immensely grateful.

During these three weeks, Mayo was doing a thorough analysis of Nelson’s health. We learned it wasn’t lymphoma after all but was far worse: stage 4 lung cancer. Nelson was meeting with doctors and scan techs every day, giving blood and receiving a measure of breathing relief by having his lung drained repeatedly.

Even still, he’d suffered three more panic attacks, unable to get enough air. Each resulted in a rush to the ER, the last one requiring hospitalization.

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June 6, 2022 

Sitting in this hospital room for the second night trying to get a handle on the vomiting and pain caused by opiates and fluid in my lungs. They’ll put a stint in tomorrow morning so I can drain it on my own.

Lots of panic in the night time. Hard to keep my mind through it all. Been at the breaking point many times, hanging over the toilet and trash cans. It’s so painful and scary, but I know God is here somehow. =\]

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”The Lord himself will be with you. He will never leave you.” (Deuteronomy 31:8)

Nelson’s journal 2/23/22

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As Nelson journals, he often gains new insights by working things out through the keyboard on his laptop. Today he’s pondering the difference between physical blindness and spiritual blindness. And in thinking about seeing, he’s also learning something special about hearing.

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February 23, 2022

We had a leader named Christiphe speak at the KC (Kokua Crew)meeting last night. Pretty charismatic guy, catered to the youth, said he was a pastor for 7 years. Stayed within the time frame, which is rare. Most go way over what I tell them. We’re halfway through the week with Sharon and their gang (from their home church in Tennessee). It’s super busy, starts early and finishes late.

Been reading John and now in chapter 9 about the man receiving sight. Site to the blind. Jesus did that a fair amount. One of the ailments of humanity, blindness. It’s a fear people have, it’s a pretty severe handicap if you have it.

Papa (Nelson’s dad) was always worried about eyes and taking care of them. The guy in John 9 was born blind. Sometimes it doesn’t tell how it happened. Of course the story is about spiritual blindness and the kangaroo trial the Pharisees had, to try and find out who healed the man and how it happened.

They hated Jesus. He was giving the people sight, causing them to see and giving them power be making them healthy. Some leaders wanted the people sick and run down so it was easier to oppress them. Why? Just the power it gave them. What an evil thing.

They suffered from blindness too, blinded by intoxication with power. Is blindness a sin? Seems more like a symptom, amounting to a lack of vision. It’s obvious that a blind person doesn’t have vision. John 9:38:

“Then the man said, ‘Lord, I believe,’ and he worshiped him. Jesus said, ‘For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.’ Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, ‘What? Are we blind too?’ Jesus said, ‘If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains’.”

Seems vision is something we are accountable for. If we don’t see and do the wrong thing, it’s not wrong, but if we do, or even claim to see and do wrong, we are guilty.

Lord, I pray for vision. So many things can affect our vision. What am I guided by? What am I getting security from?

The love of money is one thing that can blind people and cause them to make wrong choices. Bob told me he heard the pastor at Living Stones say that life is like Monopoly. At the end of the game, all the money is put back in the box and the box goes back on the shelf. Why would we be greedy with what we’ve been given then? Spiritual blindness maybe?

Lord, take spiritual blindness away from us. Amen.

Took the guys in small group to the prayer room after the flags tonight to hear God’s voice together. The usual stuff, but I’m shocked how much God wants to speak to us if we give him the time. We would all be so much better off if we just spent that time with God.

Just making the time is 99% of the battle. But the “desire for other things” usually wins out. It’s been better for me though, lately. I’m thankful for the life we have, for Annso mainly, for the BBC team we are hosting this week, for Sharon and the connection we have with each other, for good connections with people here, so that we have each other.

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”The listening ear and the seeing eye, the Lord has made them both.” (Proverbs 20:12)“