Two Special Requests

Hello all. I've just returned a short while ago from spending the evening with mom and dad. Dad has been having some up and down days recently as he's struggling with some of the physical and cognitive issues, but overall, he was in good spirits tonight. He really perked up when I showed him a photo I took this past Saturday of the progress at Kidd Brewer Stadium-- the football stadium at Appalachian State-- as he told me that he intends to get strong enough to be able to go to a home game with me this fall. I told him that if he's feeling up to it, then I would gladly make it happen.

On the drive home tonight, I really felt convicted to ask for two things, so I'd like to share them with you in this post. As I drove along, I realized that many people are not aware that the person and the family members affected by cancer often feel quite lonely. It's not that no one cares for them (we certainly understand that!), but because you cannot get out and about, you often feel as though you've lost your connection to everyone. So, with that in mind, I have a special request of each of you. I would like to ask each of you to send Mom and Dad a quick note and a photo of yourself to let them both know that you are standing with them in this fight. I have visions of filling up their house with photos of the people who love and care for them along with brief encouraging notes so that they both will know that, while they may not be able to get out to see you, you are able to come into their house and stand with them during this fight. Would you mind doing that for Mom and Dad? It doesn't have to be elaborate-- just a simple snapshot photo of you and your family would greatly be appreciated. Here's there home address:

Norman & Brenda Parks
1412 Edgebrook Drive
Garner, NC 27529

Also, could I impose upon you to forward this to as many people that you may know? I've heard from several people who don't really know mom and dad that well, yet they've been touched in some way by their story and it is my hope that this is another way to spread that story.

The second request I have is mainly for those of you who live in the Garner (and surrounding) areas. It would really brighten mom and dad's days if you could arrange for a brief visit. The key is to simply call before going over and mom will let you know if it is a good time or not. They may not always be up to receiving visitors, but they will let you know of another time that may work if that's the case. I know it would bring a little sunshine for you to simply visit for a while and catch up.

I appreciate you indulging my requests. We appreciate your prayers and continued support. Dad does have a doctor's appointment on Tuesday morning with Dr. O. I'll write more tomorrow after that visit.

As always, many thanks to each of you!

A Bit of Progress

Hello all. Dad made a bit of progress yesterday on two fronts. First, he was able to get dressed from head to toe. He still needed some help on this, but getting completely dressed (shoes included!) is a big step at this point. Additionally, the "roar" he's been dealing with in his ears suddenly stopped. This is wonderful news as he was finally able to hear conversations and a little bit of what's on TV. I told him that this is truly the answer to a prayer as many of you have been lifting him up during the past week asking for the roar to be silenced. Thank you for those prayers and please be sure to thank God for this answer. Of course, we have no guarantee that it won't come back, but we're choosing to celebrate that he's enjoyed at least one day recently without that roar.

So, after getting dressed and being able to hear, mom and dad went out for a little spin around town. They enjoyed getting some lunch and driving just about all over the place-- good thing gas is still relatively inexpensive!

We continue to ask for your prayers as dad is picking up once again with physical therapy to try to regain some of the strength he has lost. Please ask God to provide him with the strength to complete the sessions and for patience while his body "re-learns" a lot of what he needs to be able to do.

As always, thank you for your continued prayers and support!

Post-Radiation Update

All,
I spoke with my mom earlier today and she said that dad completed his final round of radiation without any difficulty. In fact, she said, he was actually quite emotional afterwards and when she asked him if he was OK, he said that he "couldn't believe that he'd made it to the end of the radiation treatments." Needless to say, the physical, mental and emotional toll this has taken on him (and all of us) is great. So, please pray for a sense of calm and peace as he's reached the latest point on this journey.

I do know that he will have a few appointments coming up by way of follow-up with Dr. O, an appointment with an ENT specialist for the hearing issue and he will begin physical therapy again on Monday of next week. I'll post more as I know it.

Please be sure to lift up to God a prayer of thanksgiving that dad has made it through this stage!

Last Radiation Treatment Today

Hello all. As I write this, dad is undergoing his 14th and final radiation treatment at the Rex Cancer Center today. This is a long journey that began back in early December and was interrupted by the surgery just before Christmas. He will also take his final chemo pill tonight as part of this round of chemo. The chemo treatment will continue next month with a cycle of 5 days on and off for the rest of the month.

Please pray for a few specific things:
1. That the radiation treatments will be successful in beating back the existing traces of melanoma.
2. That God will perform a miracle of healing and not allow any new spots to develop.
3. That dad will be successful in the process of restoring some of the cognitive and physical functionality that he's lost during the radiation sessions.

On this last point, dad's vision and hearing has suffered a bit during the past couple of weeks. Apparently, this is not uncommon for people undergoing radiation & chemo treatments. Nonetheless, it is tough as he's not really able to see anyone or anything unless you get up fairly close to him. Additionally, he has a very hard time hearing and is experiencing a "buzz" in his ears. Many of these symptoms were present during the first round of radiation/chemo, and they did diminish in the weeks in between radiation sessions, so we are hopeful that this will be the case once again. Additionally, he's having a hard time communicating his thoughts when talking, and that makes him quite frustrated.

So, that's where we are on January 14. We appreciate your prayers and support. I'll update later once the radiation session is complete. Thanks.

Latest Update: Starting PT; Radiation & Chemo Resume

Hello all. I realize I haven't posted anything in a while, so I'm sorry for not keeping you in the loop. Dad began physical therapy on Monday of this week. He's doing the PT sessions at the WakeMed facility in Clayton. They are mainly working on physical movement (walking, strength, etc.), occupational therapy (think: sitting at a desk and doing "work" tasks) and speech therapy. When someone undergoes radiation, it is basically destroying some of the tissue cells in the brain. Add in surgery and the removal of a small portion of the brain and there is a loss of some cognitive abilities. Mainly, dad just has a hard time verbalizing what he wants to say. The therapy is good, but tiring.

Also, he began the radiation and chemo sessions yesterday at the Rex Cancer Center. As you may recall, he had completed 7 of 14 sessions when they stopped for the surgery. So, as of this afternoon, he's down to 5 sessions remaining. If all goes as expected, he will finish with those next Wednesday.

Please continue to pray for strength and healing. I know many of you have asked how you can help and we're working on a way to let you know what some of the needs are that mom and dad have. Stay tuned to the blog (I hope to post something about that later today or tomorrow morning) and we'll get you the details.

Thank you for your continued support!

Homeward Bound

Hello all. I'm pleased to report that Dad is on his way home from Rex Hospital. I just talked to him a short while ago (I'm in Atlanta with Melinda and the kids visiting Melinda's family) and he is doing quite well. The past few days have brought much in the way of progress. Dad's been able to regain more of his strength and some of the cognitive setbacks (stringing words together, comprehension, etc.) have improved as well. So, with the guidance of his doctors, dad was cleared to go home today and that's where he is now. Needless to say, this is a major milestone in our journey and while it will still be challenging for him at home as he needs the aid of a walker, tires quickly and is a little restless, it will be easier for him to relax in his own home.

So, here's where things stand at this point. Radiation is still on hold as we were told it cannot resume until 10 days after the surgery. He's completed 7 of 14 treatments, so he's 50% complete. He did resume the chemo on Monday of this past week, but only took the pills for 2 days as it coincided with a major setback in cognitive function. The doctors aren't sure that the chemo was causing that, but once he stopped, cognitive abilities began to return fairly quickly. So, the chemo is on hold for the time being, but will likely resume with the radiation. Lastly, earlier this week, we did have to shave dad's head as he was loosing a considerable portion of his hair each day, so shaving it was a little easier. And now, as my Aunt Betty (dad's sister) said, he looks a lot like Howie Mandel on the TV game show!

We appreciate all of your prayers and support. Being in the hospital for 3 straight weeks is not easy under any set of circumstances and being there over Christmas is even more difficult. However, we truly appreciate how special family and friends are this year as you have stood right beside us during these difficult days. Clearly, we have a long ways to go, but as dad said to me just a short while ago, the goal for each day is to be 110% better tomorrow than he is today.

Several of you have asked what you can do to help. I've asked Mom and Dad to think about some things that they may need help with and I'll post some of those items to this blog once I have them (hopefully later today). But for now, I only ask that you hold off on visits in the immediate future until dad has a chance to get readjusted to being at home. Once he's settled, I'm sure he will welcome a few visitors, so we'll let you know when he reaches that point.

Thanks again and I'll let you know more as we have it.

Our Status

Hello all. Sorry for the silence the past few days. I wanted to get up a quick post to let you know that dad will not be home for Christmas. Instead, we'll still be on the 6th floor of Rex Hospital. The doctors were nudging us in the direction of going home for Christmas, but after we discussed things, we felt that dad's condition pretty much made that impractical as he's still needing care around the clock. So, everyone OK'd the stay at Rex. We are currently working on securing a spot in a rehabilitation facility, so he'll be at Rex until that spot is found.

As you can imagine, Christmas in a hospital is not ideal. Please pray for dad and his comfort. Also, please pray for mom for strength and to find rest where she can.

I'll post more a little later, but I wanted to make sure everyone was aware of the latest. Have a Merry Christmas.