High White Blood Cell Counts

            It’s been over a week since I last wrote. From Saturday through Wednesday (Aug 1 through Aug 5), there was, as my mother would say, ‘nothing to write home about’. The Monday counts showed the white blood cell count rising from the low 1s to 8.29: concerning, but still low.

            However, the blood draw on Thursday, Aug 6, revealed that the counts had sky-rocketed to 130. For some people that would be a lethal level. However, as I’ve learned, leukemia is an old person’s disease. I had only ever heard of childhood leukemia, and it does accounts for 1 out of 3 childhood cancers, but it is rare. So, since most leukemia patients are older and less fit than David was at the start of his illness (he was an active Army medic), there are a lot of unknowns in his case. Well, one major unknown: how long he has to live.

            It’s Sunday, Aug 9^th now, and I’m still trying to adjust to the sudden change in his outlook. Sam arrived Saturday morning for a weekend visit from California; he had not seen David since April 28th. Annie has been able to call frequently from China; she arrives home tomorrow night.

            Last weekend R’el brought our sweet grandson, Andrew, for a four day visit, the first overnight in his two-year-old life. He’s adorable, of course. He repeats everything you say to him, picking up words left and right. He learned the word ‘later’ while he was here. On Sunday afternoon, when he was told it was time to get in the car and go home, he had a melt-down and wailed, “Later!”.

            Unfortunately, but for a happy reason, Peter and Xiomara can’t visit right now. Xiomara is nine months pregnant and can’t risk travelling away from home right now.

Matt arrived by car Saturday afternoon. He has accepted a job  offer at Clark University in Worcester, less than an hour away from Lexington. He will hunt for an apartment and starts work Aug 31^st. Clark experienced a brain drain when some of its faculty moved to University of Chicago: Matt’s move reverses the direction of the brain drain.

Friday night Jim slept on the floor next to David’s hospital bed in the dining room; Saturday night Sam slept on the couch nearby. David has alternated between sleeping and lying quietly awake. He reads The Economist in snatches and continues to sip warmed honey water.

            For weeks David has had throat pain fairly constantly. Two days ago his hip started to hurt. Martin, the weekend hospice nurse thinks it is from lying still too long. It probably won’t go away, but we hope the continuous morphine will take the edge off both pains.

            It’s a peaceful Sabbath day. I’ve started the daily IV pump; Matt is WeChatting with Annie, who leaves China in about six hours; David is dozing.