Many of you may have already received Peter's very accurate recap of yesterday, but in case not, here it is for those of you not on his email list.  The only thing I would add is....yesterday on the campus of City of Hope was like being in another country.  I felt a kinship with the people there.  Though not everyone has Leukemia, many have some form of blood disease or diabetes (another of their specialties).  One cannot help but feel the camaraderie of illness -- the common journey toward health and well being, and yet, the common experience of suffering.  I saw several little bald-headed children receiving chemo in their parents arms.  It's so different than reading about such things in the newspaper...

 

It took some will power on my part not to let the tears come pouring down my face at several junctures yesterday (for various reasons), but my overall experience was that of love, skill, friendship and the knowing that I will be cared for by wonderful, skilled people!

 

Here's what Peter wrote:

 

hello all--Yesterday was a big day for Heidi and myself. We spent many hours at City of Hope in Duarte, CA in final preparations for her entering the hospital this coming Monday the 13th. I will spend next week with her there in bungalow type lodging they have on the campus.

It was an intense and exhausting day and we met many really delightful and caring staff there. It really seems to be a place that aims to care for the whole person. Interestingly, we learned yesterday that it was City of Hope researchers who developed one of the more experimental chemo treatments we discovered last year which we then persuaded Dr Polikoff (her oncologist at Kaiser) to use in a novel way for Heidi..And it helped get her through a relapse at that time and back into remission!

 

A lovely social worker met with us for a very in-depth interview yesterday and after hearing a smidgen of what Heidi has been through these 3 years, said " you are an amazing warrior woman!". We just smiled a knowing 'yes'....

 

We're looking forward to the next month or so while she is hospitalized at City of Hope to her deep healing and finally being cured of leukemia once and for all. There will undoubtedly be some twists and turns ahead and with love and our support she will navigate through all the healing which is to come.

 

She will have phone and computer of coursed while there and we will keep you informed of her stay. Special prayers and loving focus are requested in particular for Wednesday January 22 when the actual stem cell transplant is planned to be given her.

 

ps--for those of you who may be able to donate blood as she will need some transfusions most likely in this process, there is a way to do that. Let me know if you're interested and I will get you the details.

love and many many thanks!

Heidi and Peter