“the Lord is my shepherd; i shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. yea, though i walk through the valley of the shadow of death, i will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and i will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23:1-6
ondoy, pepeng and ramil are out. the biopsy and bonescan results are in. and so is another “storm” in our lives. it’s called metastasis (local name – cancer).
the day before that, on the CNN website, i had answered something like a quiz about how well do you know about cancer. that was the first time i read about metastasis and briefly, what it meant. so when my sister, ella, texted me that daddy’s prostatic tumor is malignant and that the results indicate metastatic neoplasma, i already knew.
it was no longer a surprise. i’ve only seen a couple of photos taken of daddy. that was in September, their 44th wedding anniversary and he had just gone out of the hospital. it was kinda depressing to see how his health deteriorated so suddenly. his physique was naturally lean. so you could just imagine how really thin he’d become and how sad his eyes were, which convey the pain that he felt. yes, that picture painted a thousand words.
there were already too many stories that were told about how cancer affects the lives of the ones afflicted and those who love them as well. one can just imagine the suffering, the anguish, the sorrow and the hopelessness. but when it hit close to home, the stories become real, and it feels like you’re hearing the stories for the very first time.
the first month that daddy had fallen ill and was told he may have tumor in the prostate, we were all in denial. maybe there was some mistake. the next phase for us was optimism. maybe after the biopsy and the bonescan, the doctors will find that the tumor was only benign. or perhaps, absolutely 100% gone. but no. it was malignant and the cancer cells had already spread.
at this point, we’re trying to wake up from this nightmare. but in the morning after, there should only be acceptance, because there is nothing that happens that God did not will it. the good things and the bad. the happy and the sad. at the end of the day, we shall find comfort in the truth that all of us are destined, at a time that He appointed to leave this temporary abode where our physical beings dwell.
as we fight this one last battle for daddy, we choose to see the beauty of life amidst the raging attack of cancer cells. and while we are ready to accept daddy’s fate as an absolute surrender to the will of God, we still continue to hope and pray.
there can be miracles…if we believe.
Everyday with JESUS 