I've been asked to write a 400 to 500 word story about Lorelei's cancer journey. HA! Knowing I had to keep it brief I tried to cover the first days with short phrases instead of full sentences and still couldn't get it below 600 words!

We just learned that the NBA has promoted the story of Lorelei Decker's cancer battle and her wish to be coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder to the top spot on their national website!  NBA.com/caravan. Yes, indeed, her battle is indeed "Bigger than Basketball."  Thank you to the NBA for promoting the story of this truly inspiring 17 year old.

It's is difficult to comprehend that just ten weeks ago my daughter Lorelei was struggling to breathe.  She had a massive (11 cm) conglomeration of cancerous lymph nodes in her chest that was pressing on her lungs and making it very difficult for her to breathe without coughing.  (For comparison, a softball is only 9.75 cm in diameter.) Today, after only five rounds of chemotherapy, she had a pulmonary function test and it revealed that she is operating at 135% of normal lung capacity!...

Back in early February we ordered Lorelei a long blonde wig through the Women's Health Boutique at Northpark Mall.  It was adorable.  It was long and curly and would match her natural hair color perfectly.  Early February was a very rough time in Lorelei's life.  She still had her own hair but was very aware she’d only have it for a few more days.  The women at the boutique are absolutely amazing and helped Lorelei to feel excited about the fun parts of soon being b...

(I posted an earlier version of this on facebook but decided to expand it into a journal post for Caring Bridge too.) Confession: I’ve been feeling a bit sad/jealous to be stuck in OKC during Lorelei's senior year Spring Break reading facebook posts of what feels like everyone else from afar having the time of their lives. Then God puts this in my face: Jesus Calling today: "I shower blessings on you daily, but sometimes you don’t perceive them. When your mind is stuck on a negative focus, you s...

Recently I confessed that I’ve been struggling to do my job. I’ve served as the Consulting Director at Element Fusion (an internet development company) for ten years now.  This new “cancer” season in my life (and Lorelei’s) has led me to question whether or not I should continue to work.

We are so blessed to have a huge network of people who love and support Lorelei.  When word of her cancer first came out, many people would ask her "What can I do?  How can I help?  What do you need?" People really wanted to do something tangible for Lorelei.  (But you can only eat so much chicken casserole.) What Lorelei really needed was peace of mind.  She desired prayer.  So, to bridge that gap and give a tangible thing that people could bring to her, she asked ...

My youngest daughter, Lorelei, age 17, was diagnosed with cancer Feb 3, 2012.  Honestly, it is true; you never think it will happen to you.  She has stage 2 Hodgkin's Lymphoma and will undergo 6 months of chemotherapy and one month of radiation before she leaves for college in the fall.   I've been in such a fog this past month that I've not made time to prepare a detailed blog but I plan to change that this week.