Things Are Mostly Good

Steven keeps intruders out of the sea cave with a weapon made of kelp.

The photos in this entry were taken at the Cabrillo Monument on Point Loma on a stunningly beautiful and clear Martin Luther King Day.

I've not been writing for a bit. I've received a few emails from people who were concerned, it's kind of comforting to know that if I dropped off the edge of the world one day that at least a few people would notice.

We've been busy. I think this is the first time since Steven's diagnosis that I'm starting to feel like our lives are getting back to some semblance of "normal".

Sean's best friend's sister Bryn, eating kelp.
(this is a test to see if Bryn's mom reads her email)

Not that normal really means much. I used to work pretty regularly from home before Steven was diagnosed, my contribution to the support of our household was substantial.

That ended abruptly with Steven's MRI on September 9, 2003. I switched my focus from developing databases and web applications to finding a treatment for my son that would hopefully save his life without damaging his brain and his health too badly.

Unlike many families, we already had the manual for "What To Do When You Suddenly Discover Your Child Has A Malignant Brain Tumor". Our sweet Kyra gave it to us, we never imagined we'd need it but when the time came, we were grateful.

Bryn eats it, Sean and his friend Drew battle with it.

We all cope differently with adversity in our lives, for me, it has taken until now to begin to feel that I've gained some perspective. Not a lot, but maybe just a little.

I'm working a bit more now, trying to help fill in a little of the crater that was blown in our finances by the bomb blast of Steven's illness.

I'm also looking around a bit more, using my newfound perspective and trying to discover where my place in the world is.

Things are different now, not everything is great, but things are mostly good.

We are blessed.

- Kathleen