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First Week After Cancer Diagnosis Defining Events


2-27-14

I don’t recall when everything happened the first week after his hospital admission and cancer diagnosis, but two things happened this first week that set the tone for the rest of the year.

First of all, Mathew’s friend Alan brought a guitar to the room. Mathew even played it a few times while at the Zephyrhills Hospital and he played it the first few weeks at Moffitt.

Secondly, my sister Kathleen, as soon as we heard the word cancer, she said Mathew could move into her home. This is significant. Mathew had been at the end of an apartment lease in Tampa. When I helped him move back to Dade City, he was unemployed due to him being sick and had moved in with a family friend. Mathew thought it would be temporary, that once they figured out what was wrong with him, he could get back to work and get his own place.

So, one day, while Mathew’s Stepmom was with him, Kathleen and I made a few trips and moved all of his belongings and his two cats to her home. Her home was large enough that Mathew had two bedrooms, his own bathroom and a large living room to himself. This was in February. It would be weeks before Mathew saw his new home.


Sequel and Tippy (half sisters)


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