A great Christmas present

As usual, we were running behind today. As usual, a frazzled Emily needed some help in getting us out the door.

And surprisingly, this year as usual, I loaded the car and despaired that I wouldn't have enough room to pack all the Christmas presents we wanted to bring to Massachusetts. Finally, as usual, I was able to cram everything in that we wanted to bring.

What made all this unusual though, was that probably a week ago I would have begged off packing the car, saying I needed to rest. But the favorable test results I got yesterday seemed to have provided me with a boost, as more prosaic and familiar concerns about Christmas dominated over immediate health issues.

My family and others keep asking me how I feel about the good news we received yesterday, and I find that giving a definitive answer is hard. What I do know, however, is that my condition is less at the front of my mind than it has been for the past six months.

It's hard to imagine a much better Christmas present than that. Merry Christmas.