Love and Rockets: Va-va-voom!
April and I had the good fortune to be invited to watch U.S. Space Shuttle Endeavor launch at night (our guide told us it might be the last-ever night launch of a Space Shuttle) on Friday, Nov 14.
April wasn’t feeling well; severe acid reflux and greater susceptibility to germs – both side effects of the chemo – caused a painful infection in her esophagus. But even with her feeling poorly and me being worried about her, there was something about the moment that captured us both, and took us once more away from our troubles.
There were tens of thousands of people there to watch the launch with us. At the urging of anonymous loud speakers, we sang the National Anthem together, and then the countdown commenced:
Darkness. 10 (sparks) – 9 – 8 – (brighter) – 7 – 6 – 5 (brighter) – 4 – 3 – 2 (blinding) – 1!
The sky lit up like daytime, and Endeavor shot through low-hanging clouds at the same time it broke the sound barrier, exploding the clouds away in waves as though the Shuttle were a giant fire-spewing Harley Davidson – thundering our chests and ears as it was hurled into the pool of night.
April leaned back against me and I held her. I noticed several couples around us in similar pose – it was captivating, romantic, patriotic…a truly wonderful evening, and an experience we will never forget.
The Infection
We’re going to see Dr. Gharavi tomorrow to get April an IV bag of fluids. Her throat has hurt so badly that she can barely swallow even fluids, and she’s in danger of becoming dehydrated. We haven’t heard any results yet from her tumor marker test, so we’ll bug him about that while we’re there, and I’ll be sure to let you know how it went.
As always, thank you for your love, prayers, groovy cosmic positivity, and support. We feel it at all times, and so very much appreciate each and every one of you.
Love,
Mac & April
