January 28, 2010 9:30 PM 24 days to go

A TV star!

The saga never ends! As most of you know, my wife is planning a "coming out party" for me at our church on February 21st. If you have been a long time follower of this blog, you may recall that a little over a year ago, a woman from Norway picked up on it and has been a constant follower because while I was waiting to receive my transplant, she was about to be a bone marrow donor(people like her are the true heroes in these stories - people like me can't do anything unless peiople like her exist!). In any case, our two events were coverging on each other like two archers firing arrows at each other and having them collide with each other. So much so that on the exact day that I went into the hospital to begin my preparations for my transplant. she made her donation.

She has continued to support me through these many months and, along the way, has built up a relationship with one of my daughters as their ages and families are so very similar. Making a long story short, she has made the commitment to be here for the party. I am truly overwhelmed by this wonderful gift that she is giving to me. Just to make things clear, she is NOT my donor.

And, it's a wonderful story, if it just ends there. But, my daughter has written letters to the local media and now our local TV station wants to interview us when we are all together here on that weekend!

What can I say! As I said before, I'm an average guy who happened to get a not-so-average disease. Ever since then, however, I have been on the most extraordinary ride of my life. Riding the crest of a wave that has allowed me to experience miracles, to experience firsthand what people can truly do for one another, to see what fantastic doctors, nurses, and staff we have not only in Boston but in Manchester, New Hampshire as well, and the list goes on....

These experiences are all things that I can never repay even though I know that noone is looking for repayment. So I now look to do what that wonderful movie of quite a few years ago showed that we all could do to make our lives better...

Pay It Forward...

Bob