All Good Things….Posted on Thu, Mar 15, 2012
Dear Friends and Family,
If all good things come to an end, what happens to bad ones? Well, in the case of cancer, it never really “ends” but instead goes into remission and becomes something you check up on every 4-6 months.
What I’m trying to say is, I’m in remission!
That scan I mentioned in my last email came back with good results, but since we’ve had that football pulled away before, I wanted to wait until we had another scan confirming that the little bastard (medical name, I swear) was dead. Well, it not only had no interest in growing, but it is continuing to degrade. It’s holding steady within the margin of error now, at 0.6 cm, and has gone from a bright white spot on the scans to a dark grey shadow. So, medically speaking, my last tumor is a shadow of it’s former self! That’s a little cancer humor for you. You’re welcome.
To be honest, I’m still waiting for it to sink in. It’s strange, like building your house next to a volcano. You know there’s a chance something can happen, but you try not to think about it. As I said, it’s never “over” but… it’s complicated. Helpfully, there is a visual aid: http://xkcd.com/931/ And I agree with him. Seriously.
Post-chemo life has been good. First of all, the grand total weight lost since this time last year is 40 pounds. Most of that was as a result of the Anti-Cancer diet Kristin started me on a year ago, but I’m sure the chemo helped. That, combined with going to the gym, which became a habit during chemo, and an amazing beginner’s dance class with Richard Perlon at Steps, and I’m in the best shape of my life. Not only has my hair grown back, it has done so with a vengeance! I don’t know what the heck is up with my eyebrows, but they are going nuts! I think they are trying to make up for lost time. The rest of my hair is coming in almost black, and for the first time in my life, I have a 5 o’clock shadow! I recently shaved my head again, partly because it was fun, and partly to see if it would work for my character in our new play.
Which brings me to some awesomeness: Kristin and I (and our friend Anne) are producing a play! Kristin started the process last December when we learned the outlook was positive, found a play, got rights, booked a space, and got the ball rolling. If that weren’t great enough, our teacher, Ed Sherin, has been kind and generous enough to work with us in the early stages of our rehearsals! The play is a hysterical dark comedy about two parents who are trying to get their son into the best preschool in New York, and will stop at nothing to get him in. Nothing.
This will hopefully be my last Zipperleg Chronicle. These emails started out as a way to keep you, my friends and family, informed of all the twists and turns of my journey was taking, so I won’t keep filling your inboxes to report “still clear”. I will probably write more about my experiences on my blog, as I’ve had a lot of people tell me they’ve been sharing it with people who have cancer. But for now, it’s time to get on with the rest of life.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your support in getting through this. I have been very lucky and fortunate throughout this entire ordeal with having the best team in my corner I could have asked for, starting with the Cure-For-Cancer-On-Two-Legs, Kristin. And even though I didn’t always have the energy to respond to people when they got in touch with me over the past year, it really meant a lot to me. Thank you.
With sincere gratitude,
– Ben
Categorized as Zipperlist Updates
Cheers, good wishes, congratulations, hallelujah! Your blog has been amazing, as has your journey. Not to tell you what to do, or anything, but this would make a wonderful book. So full of inspiration, courage, humor and soul. There are still so many people out there not connected to computers, and books are such lovely, warm and comforting things. Truly you have a gift, and to share your experience would be helpful to many who need exactly your kind of expression of hope, courage, and outlook on life. Again, congratulations. I am absolutely overjoyed about your remission. (I am a friend of your mother-in-law Joy)