Well it's been a while since I have written a post, which from my optic
is a good thing, but from yours may appear long overdue. So as I sit
here on the plane flying back from my very first work trip, reflecting on the last
few months, I feel so blessed to be doing as good as I am doing. Yes you did read correctly, I'm back to traveling for work and made it home safely after a week away. By Gods grace I will be able to continue that. I was
discussing with my co-workers last night about what all I had been
through and it really struck me how much improvement there has been
since I went back to work. Now don't get me wrong, there is still a
long way to go, but the simple fact that I am where I am at, is
something I am not taking lightly. Here is a pic of Taylor taking care of me the minute I returned home and she saw that I had a cold. Dr's kits, books, toys, 'spitty-up' buckets, you name it she spread out on her bed.So I have been putting off this change for a bit, but now the time is right. So in the spirit of our past fundraiser, I am going to change our blog name from Wiles' Trials, to Wiles' Miles (not the web address, just the title of the blog). Not that we don't expect other trials, heck everyday can be a trial, but in that we hope God doesn't have anything else as major planned for us this year. Of course if that's His will, we'll rest well in His sovereign power and trust in His almighty plan. We do still plan to blog and include updates on both myself and the family. We just feel it's time to change how we title and refer to our blog which reflects more of our mentality now. We have appreciated all the prayers through this and those who continue to pray for our family and my health, and will definitely post new prayer requests if needed. We continue to feel the blessings from using this blog for outreach and are strengthened and amazed by how God is still using our trials to help others. I'm still blown away that we've had 23,000+ visits to our blog. Amazing!
So, since I have gotten back to work, my strength and stamina have increased ten fold. I remember those first few days and weeks returning back to work, I would get home and and just crash in exhaustion. Now, I am working a full week, exercising three or four times a week and still have some extra juice on the weekends for the girls. I am still worn out from the long days, and that is part of the reason you haven't heard from me and that there are only so many hours in the evening for T and Meg's. As I continue to workout, a little weight and a lot of strength are returning. There for a while, it was such an ebb and flow when my esophagus kept quickly restricting and wouldn't allow me to eat the quantity or with the consistence that I needed.
This last month has been really good and the last stretching indicated that my esophagus is staying open for longer periods. Praise Jesus! That is a huge blessing, not only with a good unrestricted diet, but I don't have to have it stretched every two weeks any longer. I have graduated to only going in once a month. What great news for us to hear. Megs and I are overjoyed! Less time off of work, less trips to Baltimore, less times to find coverage for Taylor, less fasting, less time being knocked out... Praise the Lord! We were teasing the team as we headed out of the office that day telling them that we love them and all, but were thrilled that we wouldn't have to see them as often as we have been. We were doing cartwheels as we left that day, with of course a lot of strange looks from those observing that didn't know our story. So the next stretching is scheduled for September 6th.
The other cool thing about my last stretching that Meg wanted to share was that during the appt. she sat in the waiting room with another spouse of an esophageal cancer survivor. She and the other wife were able to compare ''war stories" from the past year about the treatment, surgery, recovery process to see what was similar and different. I know that it meant a lot to her to meet another family impacted by esophageal cancer and to know that this man is still alive 3 years later. Isn't God so loving with how He continues to provide us with hope in this way? It sure did help the time in the waiting room fly by for her and be yet another reminder of how many others are out there that are impacted by this specific type of cancer.
The only residual issue that I am dealing with is a polyp where my feeding tube was in my abdomen area. After the tube was pulled, the hole sealed but the polyp didn't heal itself so I'm still needing to cover it everyday with a band aid to provide coverage as fluid accumulates around it. Guess that's what happens when it's in there for five months. So we have an appt. next week with a plastic surgeon to see what the game plan will be. Other than that, working on building my muscle tone back after such atrophy is going to be a chore. I have a feeling that my upper back muscles on the right side are going to be my biggest challenge. This muscle group was the section cut by the thoracic entry to reattach the esophagus and needs the most conditioning. I still remind myself that this is a marathon, not a sprint.
So as we continue to return to 'normal' around the Wiles house, we Thank You all again for your prayers, encouragement and support. This has definitely changed my daily focus and it has allowed me to see with much more clarity. With that, I will leave you with some of the things we have been able to do over the last few months. Hope you enjoy!
Well, vacation in Myrtle Beach was a BLAST! It was so nice to have a full week of true relaxation with the family. We are so incredibly grateful that the entire Gurney side was able to go this year. We were laughing bc we counted the number of times that Meg put shoes on that week and it was only 3 times. And 2 of the 3 times were to walk the pier, which we walked to from where we stayed. Now that is our kind of vacation! (We added vaca pics to our blog page, so you should see them on the perimeter of the page when you visit it.) From there, Taylor and Meg headed to Ohio for 10 days to spend time with the Wiles side and some more time with the Gurney side and friends. It was a huge reality check that it had been over a year since Meg and I had been apart that long after all of the cancer madness began. I'm so thankful that God allowed the annual summer trip to take place for them, but hoping next year I'll be able to rejoin them again. Thanks to the Couches for taking care of me with appointments and a fishing weekend while Meg was away.
 |
| Love this one! |
 |
| Meg's Thirty-One Goodies! |
So growing up in North Fairfield, OH, we were know for our peach orchards, so we try to pick peaches every summer in Maryland to recreate those memories I had from my childhood. It was a bumper crop this year, the trees were loaded and the peaches were huge. We were thrilled to learn that our favorite orchard that we went to in the past actually uses safe organic sprays.
 |
| Sneaking a bite together! |
The evening that I returned home from my work trip, Meg was able to have another Believe Big Mug Making Party with her bible study gals. She came back refreshed and rejuvenated after being a single mom for the week and we now have 8 more mugs to brighten cancer patients days with. Yay!
 |
| Bible Study Gals |
God Bless
Take Care
Jason
