Sarah's reading from an online support group she's joined and pauses to make certain I'm listening before giving me someone's response.
Confirming she has my attention she continues, "For pain I didn't take the meds but smoked marijuana for the first time in my life! It took care of everything! Pain, appetite, sleep were all handed by it."
Laughing out loud, I hear Cheech or Chong's voice.
"Pot even makes you amorous in your recovery," he adds.
I like this guy!
"Dave's not here man," I say.
"What?" Sarah asks.
"Nothing," I sigh.
We opt to listen to Cheech or Chong's advice, foregoing prescriptions to go with Pot upon my release from the Hospital.
In no time at all Sarah has me loaded with marijuana, Gummy Bears, THC Oil, a grinder and, given my tremendous devotion to Bob Marley's religion, a Rastafarian Pipe ... everything one needs for successful pain treatment.
Before starting however Sarah watches several YouTube videos and invites our friend Tim over to demonstrate proper usage protocols before diving into proactive pain management.
"It's best to not wait on the pain but get ahead of it," Cheech or Chong writes in the Whipple Support group so I start several days before the surgery.
Much to my delight, amorous kicks in first, but that's another story.
As a minister in a state that outlaws marijuana use except in strict circumstances, but thankfully in a visionary City where it's only a misdemeanor, I find myself thankful for a natural alternative to Oxycodone and opioids favored by the insurance industry.
God was into the science of pain management way before scientists were ... as a matter of fact theologically it's argued God is the first scientist ... giving us plant based herbs to use for self-medication.
I know that some of you are skeptical.
Remember Genesis Chapter One when God says, "Let there be vegetation, seed bearing plants and fruit trees ..."? though the Bible doesn't go into detail of all the plants God created but Hemp was one of them!
Then on the 7th day God rested!
It's easy to wonder if God used some of his creation to relax, rolling a big fat one on an unspoiled Beach and working on his tan.
"YAY FOR GOD!" is what I say. "THANK YOU LORD!"
Anyway, here I sit, three surgeries into treatments for pancreatic cancer and I've yet to take an opioid and feeling pretty damn good about it.
Of course, I'm feeling pretty good about everything!
I'm spiritually calm.
Sarah and I have embraced each other regardless of what life has thrown at us ... including the stuff we throw at ourselves ... facing it as it comes and emerging closer than before.
Having, and even more so, caring for someone with, cancer is incredibly hard yet life engaging, especially with a 3 year old.
"Waiting is the hardest part," as the minor Prophet Tom Petty says, especially when Doctors are involved.
And for the next three days our life is full of Doctor appointments which is a pain.
Which got me thinking.
Doctor visitation requires pain management!
"Stay higher than the people trying to bring you down," Cheech or Chong famously advised.
So, if you're looking for me, I'm the one in a cloud.
