Have books, will travel! Marv wanted our story told of his terminal lung cancer. So that’s my focus this week. I wanted to hand it to siblings first and that meant a trip to Michigan (from South Dakota). I checked the airlines, but traveling with a few hundred books did not sound fun to me. So I drove. Took three days. Had fun with my classical music, hymns played on a piano, country music, and a dose of NPR.

So far I’ve put on over 800 miles. I’ve gotten some interesting comments. Seems like a solo road trip is not on many older people’s bucket list, much less driving around Chicago. I admit there were a few times when I was sandwiched between two semi’s in the wind and the rain where everyone was going 80, that it dawned on me that I maybe should have my head examined. But I reminded myself to keep my hands on the wheel. And firmly told myself that those times were not good times to panic.

I’m enormously thankful I can do this trip. Not everyone can at my age, 81, and I know the day will come when I can’t. So this week I will give a few presentations on the book and meet up with small groups of family and friends, including high school and nursing school classmates and former nursing students.

I will share our message: you, as a patient, always have a choice when it comes to cancer. You can choose treatment or not. Marv did not. He chose quality of life over quantity and to die at home.

Wave if you see me flying by! If you notice that I have a flat tire or something, please stand on your head (or hands) to catch my attention. Car mechanics are not my thing.

I stopped off at White Fence Farm, SW of Chicago, a place where we’d gone over 2o years ago.

Clearly, it’s a place to eat! They have seating for 1100 people at one time.