Mom and I went to the infusion center this morning, as I had 10:30 am/gemzar only on the calendar. But apparently when they switched her from cisplatin they also changed the schedule. So now it’s two weeks on (both carboplatin + gemzar) and two weeks off. We have an appointment with the oncologist next Wednesday. […]

A few days before she left the Azores to immigrate to the U.S.

On May 1, 1962 my mother landed at JFK airport from the Azores. She was alone, a 24-year-old woman who had never been on a plane, had never seen so many electric lights, had never seen a black person in person, and didn’t speak a word of English. She was coming to join my father

Today I was supposed to be on a plane to Italy for three weeks to celebrate ten years that GS proposed along the hillside overlooking the Amalfi Coast. Instead I was with mom at an infusion center, then at the hospital getting her ready for a blood transfusion tomorrow. Makes the thought of planning seem

Mom continues to hold her own. While she still complains of the fatigue, she has made enormous progress since a couple weeks ago. This morning she joined me in the garden as I planted four tomato plants. She directed me on where to put them, how to prepare the soil, etc. That was a significant

We’ve returned from the first round of chemo in what is now Cycle 2. Again, it’s once a week and the schedule goes like this: Week 1: carboplatin + gemzar Week 2: repeat Week 3: gemzar only Week 4: break Then we start on Cycle 3. Mom held up well and is now taking a

I came across this article in The New York Times, as the headline grabbed my attention: Caregiving as a “Roller-Coaster Ride From Hell” While the article focuses on the role of wife as caregiver, a few things resonated as the role of daughter as caregiver. In particular, the second paragraph struck a chord. So I

Good news. Mom has perked up. She’s still not eating much, but she’s not throwing up and engages in conversation. Today she worked on her word search puzzles again for the first time in two weeks. And now she’s watching the Portuguese soap opera, also the first time she’s watched TV in nearly two weeks.

The New Testament has a story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. I was reminded of this story yesterday. Mom had a terrible week with nausea and vomiting, unable to keep anything down. I’d called the infusion center yesterday morning, worried about not only nutrition but more importantly hydration. She was virtually immobile. So