Respective Perspective

Stan here.  Wanted to take just a moment to make a comment on the Hawaii Trip.  We purchased the tickets in June, long before Deb was diagnosed in early August.  At that time we bought trip insurance for the reason that we were not sure if we would go if Deb's mom and dad could not go.  Of course like many things after the cancer diagnosis I would have thought that there is no way we were ever going to make this trip, but as time has passed it looked more and more possible, and sure enough the next thing I knew we were on the plane.  Overall Deb did well and felt pretty good during the trip. Not quite like old times with the energy level and a little more tired at the end than before, but still she did amazingly well and we did most of the things we would do normally, just at a little slower pace. One of the medical rules was "no sun" so she had to carry an umbrella during the times of exposure to sun but that did not seem to slow things down much.

Permit me to make a few observations about the trip.  Things that just kind of hit me and fall a little into the category of "wow" or "I just did not know that".  
     I had heard all the stuff about tropical paradise and all that but I was not thinking that anyplace could be as nice and have a more perfect climate.  Other than some pleasing moments of rain it seems like you wake up everyday to a gentle breeze and a temperature that ranges from 75 to 82.  In checking with some of the locals this is how it is all the time and for me this was over anything I have ever thought of.  It just kind of hit me that weather is not one of the considerations in the state of Hawaii and it took a few days for this to sink in.

The flowers and the green beauty of the Island we were on, Kauai, is stunning.  It was amazing to me how many movies have been made and how many scenes you see where you think "I have seen this before" and then you find out it was used for some popular movie. The miles of sea that surround all of these Islands are also amazing in their color of blue and their activity.  On our deck we could see whales and when you ventured anywhere you could see surfers catching a wave.  It is really striking in the beauty of it all.

On the next to last day there we took a trip to the neighboring Island of Oahu.  Like many other guys, I watch the history channel and I wanted to see Pearl Harbor.  Deb, myself, her dad, and Nancy's father Elmer went along on the 1/2 hour flight and then an all day tour of the Island on one of these 24 passenger buses with a guide.  We caught a good break as the guide we had was excellent and had the most interesting way of  explaining the culture and the scenery.  One thing that struck me about Pearl Harbor was the fact that they have a memorial to all the submarines that went down or were lost during World War 2.  It has always seemed to me that serving on one of these things takes some special bravery and to my surprise the memorial had 52 granite stones each with a story and the names of the people who were lost on those 52 subs during the war.  3500 in all. As I read the stories most of them were lost at sea and nobody knows really what happened.  Several of them where lost on the way home after the War.  We also saw some of the other memorials but the sub one really hit me.  It was a great day for all and one of the finest tours I have been on.

We also had several tours of Kauai but we did those by ourselves in the rental van.  I did the driving on those and we had a good chance to see the sights and sounds of the many scenic attractions on that Island.  It is known as the green Island and it lives up to that in every way.  You do not have to drive very far before you see the surfers and the nonstop waves that come in all of the time.

One other thing I will mention is that our entire time was made better by the nice hospitality of Jim and Nancy.  They really know how to organize and entertain.  They hosted several nice meals along with keeping things organized with all of the room and travel arrangements.  Lots of work on their part but it sure helped everyone have a great time.  

It is a long trip but it was worth it.  It has always been on Deb's bucket list and we did it and made it home in one piece.  It was the first destination wedding I had attended and we will never forget and will always be thankful for the chance to spend time there.

Deb here:
Thanks Stan for adding your thoughts. I had lab work done today in preparation for chemo on Monday. I have my CT scan and chest x-ray done on Tues am. I don't anticipate knowing the results until I see the Dr. the next Monday. I have lost almost all my eye lashes and eye brows. It is a strange feeling looking in the mirror and seeing someone you don't recognize. It doesn't look like returning to work is going to happen. This reality is kind of sad to me.

It was so fun to return home to our newly painted kitchen, thanks to Alden and Mary. They did a great job!! We love it.