For Wilshire Baptist Church
As I left radiation treatment for the last time a few weeks ago, they gave me a souvenir from my 35 sessions: the plastic mesh mask I’d worn every weekday morning for seven weeks. Fitting tight as a glove and clamped to a table, the mask held my head motionless while therapists aimed a radiation beam at me with the precision needed to damage the DNA in the nuclei of individual cancer cells without harming healthy cells.
Continue reading “Unmasked”For Wilshire Baptist Church
I don’t go on the Nextdoor app very often, but I get email notifications and occasionally the subject or first few words of a post will get my attention and I’ll read further. That was the case with this recent post by a neighbor I don’t know in a neighborhood that is not mine:
“Sometimes, when I need a brief respite from my kids, I drive to a nearby church & … well, just kinda chill there. I tell everyone I’m going to take a time out & church parking lots became my time-out spot. Far enough from my house that I can take a few deep breaths to myself & close enough that I’m not anxious about being too far away. Sometimes I listen to music or read books. Sometimes, I have a snack. Sometimes, being an adult is hard & I zone out, staring off into the distance for a moment.”
Continue reading “Time Out for Respite”For Wilshire Baptist Church
There’s a lot I can do to help people and a lot I can’t do; a lot that I like to do, and a lot that I don’t like to do. Among the few things I can and will do that hits the sweet spot on the graph of those possibilities is donating blood.
During my adult lifetime, I’ve given almost nine gallons of blood. That sounds like a lot but there are folks who have given much more. The top donor in the Guinness Book of World Records has given more than 25 gallons over the past 60 years. The majority of my donations have been through Wilshire’s periodic blood drives. I’ve done it because the need is evident, it’s easy to do — you just lay on your back and relax for 30 to 40 minutes — and when you’re done you get some snacks and a free pass for a lazy afternoon nap. You also get the satisfaction of knowing you’ve helped people in real need in a very tangible and personal way.
Continue reading “The Gift of Life . . . No Kidding”