Waiting and praying; praying and waiting.

I really dislike waiting. Really. I mean it. If there's one thing I don't do well it is waiting (just ask Mike).

So today for me, and I'm sure Mike and several of our friends is going to be a hard day. Because that's basically what we're doing...waiting. And I might also mention praying. A lot.

Our good friend Gene is in surgery right now to remove a tumor from his brain. The whole thing just shocks me. You kind of have to know the back story to understand. So if you bare with me, I'm going to share our story of friendship and Gene's struggles in recent years.

Back in 1995, when I started working at Parkwest Hospital's dietary department, I met not only Mike but also Gene. Gene and Mike had worked with each other for a number of years before that. Some of us from work would hang out when we weren't working. Gene was one of the people we hung out with. We bowled, we putt-putted, played Playstation games, went out to eat I don't know how many times at Denny's and Perkins at late hours of the night. Our little group had a lot of fun. We still do. Not as much as we used to (kind of happens when you get married and have children) but we still all try to keep in touch and hang out when we can.

Gene is just a great guy. No way around it. He's thoughtful, funny, the ultimate optimist. I'm glad that we have the honor to call him a friend. Kind of makes this last year hard to understand.

In a years time, Gene lost his mom to cancer, was diagnosed with cancer (a very treatable type), and his wife passed away. Just insanity. Pure insanity what he's gone through. I feel for him. I really do. We worry about him and pray for him. As a result of his cancer, he had to start chemo treatments which of course, he ended up losing all his hair (which was a little strange at first since Gene was known for having a really thick head of hair). But, after all the treatments were over, he was cancer free! For a couple of months he went back to the doctor and the cancer levels were fine. And then...

They very gradually started going up again. And they couldn't see anything in the scans of his body where the cancer had been. We kept wondering what was going on. Then Gene called us last week with some news. Apparently, the mobility in his right side was becoming impaired. So they did a CAT scan and then they found it. A brain tumor. From what Gene has told us. It's not embedded in the brain. The doctors feel confident they can get it out and he'll be fine. But that still doesn't change that our good friend was going to have to have brain surgery. I don't care who you are. That's serious business.

Right now as I type this, Gene is in surgery. And I'm praying, and praying, and praying. And waiting, and waiting, and waiting.

And this comes to my mind:
"Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:28-31



And this too:
"Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10

UPDATE: They think they've gotten all of the tumor. Gene should be going to a normal hospital room tonight and has been eating "normal" hospital food.