Cycle 4 - Big Guns Treatment

I am so behind on blogging but am going to try to catch up. Two weeks ago, I went to Boston for my "big guns" treatment after a forced week off for my body to rest. My brother Jason drove me down and stayed, and God sent just the right person to accompany me. We knew when I headed out that I would not be staying on my normal hospital floor with the nurses that I've been working with over the last 4 cycles. However, I was told that the double room I would be staying in would not include a roommate so Jason could stay. I was still feeling kind of bad about this; I wasn't going to be in familiar surroundings with nurses who have become friends. I was wondering why God would allow this additional trial, and then He reminded me, "This isn't all about you." I realized that perhaps there was somebody new that I was going to meet that God would enable me to encourage...maybe a nurse. (Ironically enough, less than an hour later, Jason pointed out the same thing.)
So, when we arrived at Ellison 14, it was so different from what I am used to...much more hospital-like. Poor Jason didn't have anything but a chair to sit on; he used my bed for a footrest. My nurse was really nice and had been working oncology for 12 years (a blessing as I was comfortable with her administering my chemo...Thank You, Lord). And I also found out that I was going to have a roommate. Jason ended up sleeping in the lounge on a cot, and he was so gracious about this. My poor roommate was having a lot of cancer-related issues that they were trying to figure out and was in a lot of pain and very weak. We were able to talk some, and because I had such energy, I was even able to help her. Sharing a room with her also helped me take stock of my situation and realize how fortunate I am. She will be battling cancer for the rest of her life, off and on. I don't believe that will be the case for me.
The most amazing thing about the whole trip was that I took the chemo so well. I got out of the hospital 1 day early, and I was even able to walk out to the parking garage! This hasn't happened since my first big guns treatment. Praise God! I was exhausted the next 3 days, but I didn't have any nausea and was able to eat decently...truly amazing.
So why was Jason the perfect companion for this trip? Well, I certainly appreciated the great conversations that we had. How often do you get to spend lots of hours on end together, allowing for conversation beyond the "quick catch-up" to happen. This was a blessing. Also, he was so easy-going about us having to fly by the seat of our pants and not having comfortable accommodations. I knew that he really didn't care, so I didn't worry about it. So, this was a memorable chemo trip.