A 1-2 Suckerpunch: Breast Cancer and the War in Ukraine

I know there’s gonna be lesson somewhere

I’m gonna think a lot about it later

Right now I’m miles away

— Marc Cohn, “Miles Away”

If I seem to have been quiet lately on this blog and on social media, I have been. There have been two major stressors in our family life. First, my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. Then, in January, my daughter and son-in-law traveled to Kyiv, Ukraine on an exploratory mission trip and were there when the city was first attacked by Russia in late February. In addition, we’re in a lesser-stress-but-still-stressful season of high school graduation, “where-do-I-go-to-college?”, navigating through the COVID-19 pandemic, and other to-be-expected ups and downs of teenage parenting of our other children. It has been a lot. A lot of processing. A lot of “just hold me while I cry.” And a lot of just getting through the day in a dazed stupor.