BREATH

The sun didn't come out today in our end of LA. It was kind of a gloomy day. Like many Angelenos, we bundle up on days like today. Go ahead, make fun of us—but it's such a novelty to wear a sweater in LA! Pablo wore two shirts and a sweater vest and a suit coat; he wanted to dress like one of the dudes on the cover of 'Lemony Snicket.' Bundled in our long sleeves we traveled to CHLA with long faces. Despite the lack of solar rays, we found the most nourishing warmth this afternoon, indoors, at the CHLA Oncology Clinic.

How did this happen? What's this about? Our warmth had to do with something far more significant than solar rays. Our warmth had to do with our hearts. Our warmth had to do with Dr Mascarenhas putting his stethoscope to Pablo's back, behind his right lung, and hearing breath! The sound of BREATH, breathing, inhaling, exhaling: that thing we all do whether we like chocolate or hate Sarah Palin or love Cleveland in November or agree on how GM should be bailed out.... No sound could make us happier than what Dr M heard through his rubber n metal contraption. I'm almost winded with excitement just typing this.

Last Thursday, Dr M heard nothing when he put his stethoscope on the same spot. The fluid in P's lung blocked the sound. This was the impetus for the new round of chemo that started Friday. We had to throw something at that tumor, to knock the pants off of it, to push it back to nothingness, where it came from. The chemo Pablo started on Friday is the last house on the block for him, in terms of chemotherapeutic treatment. So, you can see why today's development is so important.

Dr M hearing breath means—in all likelihood—that the chemo is knocking back the size of the tumor, and the fluid that's building up between the lung and the sac that contains the lung. I say probably because we have not done an X-ray or a scan to verify this. And we won't do an X-ray until next Tuesday. Why? Last Friday, Dr M proposed that if we heard breath today, we'd let the chemo continue kicking butt on the tumors. He said something along the lines of, 'I can wait another week for good news.' We agreed. It's the Zen approach. It's worked for us so far. You know that cos you've ALL chopped wood and carried water WITH US.

We owe all of you a huge THANKS for your daily three minute blasts of love + energy. Let's keep the operation in motion. It's WORKING....

We are having a good night around here. We wish you the same.