Update on Logan’s Treatment
It looks like Logan and Amanda and AJ will be celebrating Christmas in the hospital this year. There was a small chance that Logan’s “numbers” might improve to allow a discharge for the holiday before the next chemo round. Two days in a row of growing numbers are needed. But his white blood cell count is still at zero as of this morning. So, the wait continues. Without white blood cells the risk of infection and inflammation are too great to allow Logan out of the hospital.
So FaceTime will be a big player on Christmas. It already has been keeping all of us in touch as you can see from the pic. That FaceTime call connected AJ & Logan at Children’s Hospital in Dallas, me in Irving, TX at work, and Kevin in Florida. Kevin is not joining us for Christmas this year as he is just recovering from COVID.
Lyrics from Yusuf/Cat Stevens
“It’s not time to make a change. Just relax, take it slowly. You’re still young, that’s your fault. There’s so much you have to go through. Find a girl, settle down. If you want you can marry. Look at me, I am old, but I’m happy.”
It is just a beautiful song. When I was younger I did not appreciate Cat Stevens’ music, but if you look on my Spotify account his songs are high in my rotation. This song describes an exchange between a father and a son as the father cannot understand that his son needs to break away and find a new life. Do what I did” the father advises his son, while the son is looking to break away.
Text Exchange
What does this have to do with Logan? Some context: Sleep has been the most difficult aspect of the hospital stay for Logan and Amanda and AJ. The comings and goings of the staff, the treatment, the lights, the noises all conspire against a full night’s sleep. Amanda and AJ are forced to be creative about how to get Logan to sleep and how to sleep themselves. Music is a part of this.
I received a text one recent evening from AJ:
“It was a mistake to sing Logan Father and Son. I got to the lyric “there’s so much you have to go through” and just started crying. Good news is Logan is still sound asleep on me”
My reply:
“It’s a great song with meaningful lyrics. And all of us do need to go through a lot. Logan sooner than most of us. You and Amanda are right now going through a lot. Together. Emotions are good to experience. That you are singing to your sleeping son, soothing him to sleep, well, that’s what makes me cry happy tears.”
The pride that I have in AJ is immense. He is really the epitome of a good man, and he and Amanda are great partners during Logan’s treatment. Logan is blessed to have them both.