I believe in miracles!

Faith, hope, prayer, love and finally a miracle! Alan is in remission. Let us offer up thanks to God for this miracle and continue to pray for Alan's recovery.

Hebrews 11:1 says, Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

Alan had great faith and it inspired us all.

Your thoughts, your prayers, your visits, your calls sustained Alan and his family of caregivers through even the most difficult times and there were many of those. Thanks to you. And now equally amazing is the miracle of Alan's art - he sees though he can not see. His art is phenomenal - another miracle in Alan's journey - a miracle for all of us to see and and feel and share. Though these photos here do not do his paintings justice they will give you a little bit of an idea of how amazing his gift is. I believe in miracles!

Thank you Alan for your faith, for your love, for the wonderful spirit that you share with everyone that comes into your world. I am so deeply blessed by you through the mercy of God. Keep on keeping on Alan. I love you! genie

Faith is a bird that feels the dawn breaking and sings while it is still dark.

Alan's faith in God amazes and inspires me. I was blessed to spend a couple of hours with him on Saturday. He faith and joy overflow onto me and give me courage and strength for my own journey. Surely you can all feel his love and faith and courage - whether you are near or far. Let his love and faith give you strength for you own journey.

Keep on praying for Alan and his caregivers - especially Ronnie and Alan's mom & dad.

Prayer for all....
Merciful God we thank you for answered prayers. We lift Alan up to you and continue to entrust him into your care. For all those who pass this way we pray for them and their journeys - for whatever burdens they may bear. Grant us peace and wisdom and courage and let us bear the light of your love into the world - with Alan as our shining example. Amen.

"If I had known that, I would have stayed in the mountains!"

Life is beautiful! Our prayers continue to be answered!

After completing his second round of chemo and his first round of radiation, Alan and (some of) his entourage made the trek to the beautiful western Carolina mountains to rest, relax and celebrate all things good and glorious!

"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves. For my part, I should like to stay here all winter or all my life or even all eternity." - John Muir

And a glorious time was had by all!

They left Macon early Friday afternoon and arrived in Cashiers, North Carolina just in time to unload and unwind before the temperature began to plummet. Ronnie kept a watchful eye on the thermometer as it dropped: 17... 14... 10... 5... all the way down to 1 degree! On Saturday, they made their way to Highlands for a visit to the Stone Lantern, Alan's favorite shopping venue. On Sunday the snows came. It snowed and snowed and snowed. Alan was thrilled! To be snowed-in with good (and talented) friends, musical instruments, and plenty of food & beverages happens to be a pretty "heavenly" experience. Ronnie, Kelli, Kim, Terry, Jason, Jonathan, Jeff, Kevin, Christina, and George all did their part to make the week perfect!

They made their way back to reality (home) on Friday so Alan would be ready to be "hooked" back up for his third round of chemo which was scheduled to begin today. Because of some side-effects Alan was having, they decided he would not be able to begin the third round until next week to which Alan replied, "Well darn! If I had known that, I would have stayed in the mountains!"

More later...

In the meantime, please keep him and his caregivers in your thoughts and prayers.

Love to all,
Juli

His eye is on the sparrow!

Happy New Year!

I know it has been way too long since the last post but life has a way of getting away from us. Now that comment really gives me pause - life is too precious for us to let it get away from us. I will try to do a better job of keeping you up to date on Alan.

First the good news - Alan and I spent the afternoon singing together (as I played the guitar) and enjoying the blessings of God through many wonderful old hymns....

Victory in Jesus, I'll Fly Away, Blessed Assurance, Balm in Gilead, In the Garden, The Lighthouse and many more. We sang together for over two hours. We finished up the afternoon with His Eye is One the Sparrow - and I know he watches me. I know he watches Alan!

Please keep Alan in your prayers - the chemo is rough. His spirit is amazing and my heart and soul are blessed after having spent the afternoon with him. Remember to call him - leave a message if he does not answer - he has good days and bad days. One of the songs (new to Alan) that touched us both was The Servant Song and I want to share some of it with you.

We are travelers on a journey,
fellow pilgrims on the road.
We are here to help each other,
walk the mile and bear the load.
I will hold the Christ-light for you,
in the night time of your fears.
I will hold my hand out to you,
speak the peace you long to hear.
I will weep when you are weeping,
when you laugh I'll laugh with you,
I will share your joys and sorrows,
'til we've seen this journey through.

We ARE all travelers on this journey and we ALL have burdens to bear - let us travel together in the light and love of God and let us bear one another's burdens and let us all see this journey through...together.

Peace and blessings to you all. Genie

Please don't forget to pray for Ronnie & Alan's parents - they are wonderful caregivers and they are surely bearing Alan's burden with him.

"Hair" today, gone tomorrow?

Let it fly in the breeze

And get caught in the trees

Give a home to the fleas

In my hair

A home for fleas

A hive for bees

A nest for birds

There ain't no words

For the beauty, the splendor, the wonder

Of my...

Hair, hair, hair, hair, hair, hair, hair

Flow it, show it

Long as I can grow it

MY HAIR!

~ Hair Musical: James Rado & Gerome Ragni

Hi Everyone!

Today was Alan's first day of chemotherapy. He and Terri, his sister-in-law, arrived this morning - bright and early - to receive what amounted to a "I'm-going-to-beat-this-cancer-cocktail!"

Last week he had a port-a-cath surgically implanted just under the skin in the upper part of his left chest. His chemotherapy was administered through that cath today. He will also be on a continuous chemo-pump which will be refilled each Monday for the next three weeks. He will then begin a round of radiation followed by another round of chemotherapy.

Alan's positive and joyful attitude is truly inspirational! Continue to keep him, his family, Ronnie, and his care-givers in your thoughts and prayers.

Also, if you plan to visit, please take every health precaution as his immune system will be virtually non-existent.

Love from him to all...

Prayer for Alan

God of Grace and God of Glory,

We lift your child Alan up to you in prayer. We also lift up Ronnie, Alan's family, his doctors and all his caregivers. We pray for an extra measure of courage and strength and healing for Alan as he continues on this journey. Give us who love him and pray for him an extra measure of faithfulness in our prayers for Alan. And as we pray, we remember all those who need your mercy and grace and healing - let us be beacons of your light and love wherever we go.

Amen

Psalm 121:1 - 2
I will lift up my eyes to the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

Keep those prayers coming

Alan's faith continues to inspire and amaze. His faith and his wonderful spirit is a beacon of light to all of us who have ever spent time with him, but in this journey his light and love have been especially bright - shining on us all. As I have pondered Alan and his journey over the past few years I am reminded of Job and one particular verse from Job keeps coming to my mind -

But He knows the way that I take; when he has tested me I will come forth as gold.
Job 23:10 (NIV)

In the midst of so much adversity Alan has shown great faith and courage and God knows Alan and when he has been tested he too will come forth as gold.

************************************
Alan is healing beautifully and sends his heartfelt thanks to all of you. Perhaps you will note the little shock of color in his hair - a reflection of his colorful soul - a beautiful sight.

He has some tests coming up and on October 31 he will have outpatient surgery for the doctor to put in the chemo port and then the next week he will meet with the oncologist to set up his schedule of chemotherapy and radiation.

Keep those prayers coming and keep calling and visiting and caring.

May God continue to shine his love and grace on us all - we are all tested and when we come through we will all "come forth as gold".

Peace to you, Genie