The surgery journey really begins with a 90 second call on the day prior to the surgery.

"Hi this is Dr Janzen. Is this Angus?"

"Yes"

"So your bilateral mastectomy surgery is scheduled for 9:00am tomorrow. You know you'll need to be there at 7:00am?"

"Yes"

"And when are they doing the nuclear medicine?"

"It's scheduled for 1:00pm today."

"Okay. Great. See tomorrow then. Good bye"

"Wait? Will there be drains?"

"Yes absolutely. There will be four. Two on each side. Any other questions?"

When people start saying "I was wondering how you are doing." It's probably time to put fingers to keyboard again. Yvette and I have been working through Acts in our morning time with God. And it is amazing to see the growth and support of the early church in the face of adversity. Some of that adversity is internal and some of it is external. Peter wrestling with the dietary laws that he grew up with. Paul wrestling with circumcision for Greeks. Persecution by the Jews and the Romans. Through it all the church grows and becomes this amazing witness in the world for the Good News.

It's not that there hasn't been much to write about - because there has been lots. It's not that there hasn't been time - because other than Evan's visit last week there has been lots. But when you feel like crap and are struggling to eat - somehow writing just seems to fade into the background. At any rate accept my truly Canadian apology. I'm sorry for keeping you waiting this long.

Folks,

I was texting with my brother yesterday after a long day of chemo (last one) and realized that I had a lot of little threads going on that I would really appreciate prayer for. And I know who prays for me.  Y'all.

This verse from Psalms cropped up in my daily devotions with Yvette a few days ago and its promises give me courage to keep going in the face of new challenges.

Give ear, O LORD, to my prayer; and give heed to the voice of my supplications!
Psalm 86:6

 Happy solstice all,

My thoughts about God's marvelous complex creation have taken me in two very different directions lately. The Psalmist David talks about the marvels of the world we live in:

 "When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor." (Psalms 8:3-5)

My friends (and family),

I know that many of you were concerned about my chemotherapy treatment and the CT brain scan results that I received on Tuesday.

So it begins. The Chinese proverb springs to mind. "The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step." And so it is on an inauspicious Tuesday that I take the first steps on my treatment journey.

Paul wrote to the Corinthians a greeting in his second letter that gives purpose to my journey:

My favorite definition of courage is "Courage is the gazelle turning to face the lion." While we often talk about faith and fear, not often do faith and courage get linked. Faith and courage walk hand in hand. Today I feel like the gazelle. What I have is faith that as Paul says in Romans "we know that for those who love God all things work together for good."

As I began this week I had the words from a passage in Isaiah 40 running through my head -  "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles;"

One of the joys of my current first aid work site is the eagles that soar along the Fraser River. Wheeling in the sky, climbing the thermals. Recently I had one soar past the 18 story tank I climb each day so close I thought I could reach out and touch it. Truly majestic birds. Inspiring as I thought about how the Lord cares for eagles.