Today Nadine went for a walk all alone for the first time since December. Well, not completely alone, but for about half an hour she was on her own. We both took a bus uphill early this morning and popped off at Birkenkopf from where she walked a route we were practicing together during the last few days.

While I went off for the run indicated below, Nadine took the almost straight way through the woods from the starting point to one of the small bends on the way back. So if something would have happened, I could have always picked her up on my way.

The whole thing turned out to be well calculated: Nadine reached the end of the course one minute earlier than me. From there, we were walking back home down the Hasenbergsteige towards our house and a decent breakfast. So we’ve got a proper setting now that’s crying for repetition!

Today at the breast center we were talking to the doctor in charge. Here are the reults:

1. The CT of Nadine’s upper body showed no tumors in the lung. So the infect she suffered from recently was nothing more than an infect.
2. Nadine is allowed to leave the house on her own now. Not for hiking tours of course, but for smaller trips. This makes life much easier because we do not need to organize company for all bits and bobs.
3. We’re allowed to go on holiday after chemo session number four in the middle of April.  Nothing exhausting, no crowded places, no adventure trips. But a calm atmosphere in a warmer climate somewhere else than home.

So we got exactly the answers we were hoping for. It looks like life isn’t always bad… In fact, we were so happy we could dance. Here is a song I can remember both of us doing so at a party a few years ago:

P.S.: The doctor in charge is not the namesake of one of my most appreciated philosophers of science – what a pity. If I’m ever going to meet this guy I need to ask him if he’s got a middle name starting with an S.

As you might remember, back in December Nadine’s radiation theraphy had to be postponed for a while due to a steroid psychosis. Now, her chemotheraphy was halted too because she caught an infect. She took some antibiotics that brought her temperature back down within a week so that treatment could be continued on Tuesday. Back on track again!

In the picture you can see her sitting in the chemo-room of the breast center in front of a picture that symbolizes the long way she still has to go. Yes, the road shown there leads into Death Valley – but it is also leading back out if it’s followed with strength, patience, and perseverance. So that’s what needs to be done right now.

And it seems that chemotherapy and art therapy are going hand in hand – here is the picture she painted yesterday: