Day 4 of Last Week: Thursday, October 2, 2025: “ONE MORE DAY!!!!”

03 Oct 2025 Leave a comment

by lanikamal in Jadan's Cancer Journey Tags: , , , , , ,

Jadan has made it to the second-to-last day of chemotherapy. Today was the first day we noticed the flip calendar on the counter. Funny how we don’t notice things and then see them as something new. After helping Amanda change the date, he received his words of encouragement and was welcomed to his chair. Even with the excitement of being so close to the end of treatment, he struggled with nausea.

Once again, we were grateful for our very attentive and caring nurse who helped Jadan avoid feeling sick during the Huber needle placement and flushing. Jadan’s vitals are always checked first thing, which was great.

The next task is to visit the blanket oven for a warm blanket to snuggle with. One of the side effects of treatment has been shakiness. Having a blanket on the shoulders or lap helps.

FUN FACT: I checked to see if our little soulgardener was still watching over us, and he was! So cool! He has been there since our first week of treatment. I didn’t expect the little guy to stay there the whole time. It’s very cool that he’s still here!

Overall, today was better than the first few days of treatment. Jadan still experienced off-and-on nausea, but was able to go mindfully still which helped keep getting sick at bay.

We had a visit from Jadan’s doctor toward the end of the day. We learned that he will have another CT scan in about a month. This will be a baseline scan that will help us as we move further into navigating his cancer. Keep in mind that Jadan’s tumor was mixed, 80% treatable with this therapy and 20% only treatable with surgery. What we don’t and still don’t know is the type of cancer that spread to his lymph nodes. The baseline could give us more information on that, but may not. The doctor said it takes time to see the results of chemotherapy. We were relieved to learn his scan will be sooner rather than later.

Mobi welcomed Jadan home. He waited patiently while Jadan was in treatment. All the animals seem to know when he doesn’t feel well. They surround him with snuggles, which is perfect comfort as he prepares for the last day of chemotherapy.

Art for Day 4: Inspired by patience in times of difficulty

“When calamity striketh, be ye patient and composed. However afflictive your sufferings may be, stay ye undisturbed, and with perfect confidence in the abounding grace of God, brave ye the tempest of tribulations and fiery ordeals.”

‘Abdu’l-Bahá

Round 3: Day #5: Friday, September 12, 2025 – “Don’t let go of the burritos!”

21 Sep 2025 Leave a comment

by lanikamal in Jadan's Cancer Journey Tags: , , , , ,

The last day of chemotherapy for the third session went okay. Jadan still felt nauseous but managed to eat a couple of breakfast burritos from McDonald’s. And what would life be like without hot picante sauce?

When it comes to food, if he wants it, we get it. We are never sure if something will work, especially since feeling sick has been so difficult this week.

It was exciting to reach the last day of treatment for round three. Knowing that he has two weeks off to recover and only one more week left – 5 DAYS! – is a relief. He’s got this!!!

From the start of coming to treatment, we noticed the office decor. There are flying pigs everywhere. We finally asked Amanda at the front desk about the meaning behind “when pigs fly!” She said all the pig art has been there for years—it was there when she started working. She also said that the patients absolutely love it. When patients come in, they laugh and remind her never to change it. I guess the pig art will change “when pigs fly!”.

Prayer for the last day of chemo:

O God, my God!  Fill up for me the cup of detachment from all things, and in the assembly of Thy splendors and bestowals, rejoice me with the wine of loving Thee.  Free me from the assaults of passion and desire, break off from me the shackles of this nether world, draw me with rapture unto Thy supernal realm, and refresh me amongst the handmaids with the breathing of Thy holiness.

O Lord, brighten Thou my face with the lights of Thy bestowals, light Thou mine eyes with beholding the signs of Thine all-subduing might; delight my heart with the glory of Thy knowledge that encompasseth all things, gladden Thou my soul with Thy soul-reviving tidings of great joy, O Thou King of this world and the Kingdom above, O Thou Lord of dominion and might, that I may spread abroad Thy signs and tokens, and proclaim Thy Cause, and promote Thy teachings, and serve Thy Law and exalt Thy Word.

Thou art, verily, the Powerful, the Ever-Giving, the Able, the Omnipotent.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá

Monday, August 11th: “Just do normal”

12 Aug 2025 Leave a comment

by lanikamal in Jadan's Cancer Journey Tags: , , , , ,

Jadan is starting his first day of week three today. This is his second week without chemo. He will begin his second round on Monday, August 18th, the same day the Fall 2025 semester starts at the University of New Mexico. From the beginning of treatment, the care team’s advice has been, “just do normal,” meaning live as normally as possible. For Jadan, that means playing music, listening to classic vinyl, and eating his favorite margherita pizza from Amore Neopolitan Pizzeria. I am happy to share that Jadan has been able to engage in many of his normal activities. We are grateful he is feeling well.

Last week, he was navigating bone pain. This week, the pain has subsided, and he is feeling strong. Also, during our last visit to Dr. Purdy, we learned of the concern about possible hearing loss, a side effect from cisplatin, the medication that cures his cancer type. Cisplatin damages hair cells found in the cochlea, where sound vibrations are converted into electrical signals that the brain interprets (Acco.org).

We were able to get an appointment with the audiologist late Friday afternoon, and felt inspired by the sign on the check-in desk. According to the results, Jadan has not had any ill effects of hearing loss. This was great news! He now has a baseline to follow as he progresses in his chemotherapy treatments. The goal is to avoid hearing loss completely. We will follow up with Dr. Purdy this Thursday to get his take on the results and for another blood test. We want to avoid a week-long hospital stay as much as possible.

In celebration of the great news, you are invited to learn how to create your very own soul gardeners. The following video will include the materials needed and instructions for shaping the wire. Soul Gardeners celebrate the essential nobility in all human beings. They are perfect to bring joy to others. Enjoy!

Chemo Day 2: May your day be as wonderful as you are!

30 Jul 2025 Leave a comment

by lanikamal in Jadan's Cancer Journey Tags: , , , , ,

One of our most significant take-aways from chemotherapy so far – Jadan and the steroid medication do not go well together. He has experienced dizziness from the moment he was given it on day 1. His first night’s sleep went okay until 2:40 am. After some time managing, now feeling well, he was able to return to bed only to wake up early for chemo day 2.

This morning was rough – chills, shakiness, and not feeling well.

Our job is to ensure that Jadan does not experience an allergic reaction to the meds. I checked his temperature—it was normal. We were good to head to treatment.

Jadan’s new best friend, Amanda, had a brand new friendship bracelet ready for Jadan during our check-in. Today’s message was spot on. Even though this morning was difficult, the day had significantly improved.

Once settled into his chair, Jadan told his nurse, pharmacist, and doctor how he felt. It was determined that he was not doing well with his steroid dosage, so the dexamethasone (steroid) was moved from 12 mg to 4 mg. I am happy to report that he didn’t experience any more dizziness. Even better, he enjoyed oatmeal and later had a pesto grilled chicken sandwich handcrafted by Kevin (dad).

Between breakfast and lunch, we had time to play Super Mario Bros on the Switch. The screen was so small that every avatar – good or bad – looked like cute little puppies to me. Thanks to Jadan’s patience and guidance, we could free the poplins (citizens of the flower kingdom) imprisoned by the monster Bowser.

During Jadan’s nap, I found a beautiful metal flower that inspired some art. I used the crescent moon tangle in the shape of a flower. The versatility of the crescent moon is endless. The crescent moon tangle is one of the fundamental tangles to learn. It introduces a technique where you mirror or ‘aura’ the shape of the shaded black ‘bump’. Another method used was shading. This gives contrast to lines, creating the illusion of depth.

To create mindful art through the Zentangle Method, please visit Zen with Zeal: Cultivating mindfulness, healing, and well-being. Tutorial videos are linked, and tangle step-outs are shown in the slide PDF for each tangle used in art created throughout Jadan’s Chemo Journey.

Chemo Day 2 art is grounded in gratitude for the power of love.

“Know thou of a certainty that Love is the secret of God’s holy Dispensation, the manifestation of the All-Merciful, the fountain of spiritual outpourings. Love is heaven’s kindly light, the Holy Spirit’s eternal breath that vivifieth the human soul. Love is the cause of God’s revelation unto man, the vital bond inherent, in accordance with the divine creation, in the realities of things. Love is the one means that ensureth true felicity both in this world and the next. Love is the light that guideth in darkness, the living link that uniteth God with man, that assureth the progress of every illumined soul. Love is the most great law that ruleth this mighty and heavenly cycle, the unique power that bindeth together the divers elements of this material world, the supreme magnetic force that directeth the movements of the spheres in the celestial realms. Love revealeth with unfailing and limitless power the mysteries latent in the universe. Love is the spirit of life unto the adorned body of mankind, the establisher of true civilization in this mortal world, and the shedder of imperishable glory upon every high-aiming race and nation.“

‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 2