The Carrot

(When I got out of the Army in 1973 and was looking to return to radio, Randy Jeffery took a chance and hired me.  At that time he had what was one of the best run and superb sounding stations in Florida.  WSIR was licensed to Winter Haven but sounded like it belonged in a major market.  Randy was the owner and general manager.  In a couple of years I moved on to Tampa and larger cities with Randy's blessing and continued support.  He later sold the station and became one of the most successful radio and television brokers in the country.  Eventually he and his wife, Kim, retired to Charleston, South Carolina to enjoy the good things of life.  Having recently completed treatment for cancer, Randy composed a note to family and friends that I found not only compelling and inspiring  but also just plain good medicine for those of us who have been touched by this disease.  He gave me the go ahead to share it here. Thanks Randy!  Save some oysters and lobsters for me.)

2 hours ago

Like many boys in the idyllic Norman Rockwellian 50's my performance always seemed better if there was a fantasy-like carrot attached, school grades being the exception.  In baseball at the plate, I was Ernie Banks and this at bat with a man on base could win it for the Chicago Cubs.  As an adult businessman fantasy gave way to reality, but each task carried more reward when it was attached to the achievement of an objective, either for a client, my company or my family.  A lifetime diet of carrots.

Most who know us are aware of the attachment we have to Dutch, our Sabre 48 boat and to coastal Maine.  For 13 years cruising has been an important part of our lives together and has taken us deep into the isolated wilderness of Canada's British Columbia on the West Coast to Nova Scotia on the right coast.  In between and early in the process we apprenticed for three summers in Northern Michigan on the Great Lakes, achieving USCG Master Captain status and for the next several years learned by doing the eastern seaboard of our country.  On very rare occasions piloting Dutch in angry seas has been like an Outward Bound experience, but at all times it is the shared experience of two people working together to achieve an objective and share in the maritime beauty our Creator has produced.

Shortly after the cancer diagnosis on March 15 and being only somewhat aware of the extent of the challenges ahead, I made getting to Maine, for at least part of the summer, the objective.  We consulted my doctors on the plan and all three concurred, but maybe with a discrete wink.  It could done, but only if all the pieces fell into the right place.  Maine became the latest carrot.

As Kim has often said, Dutch is our floating summer condo with a front and back yard view that changes every time we move to a new location.  But the real attraction is the deep, cold and clear waters of the Gulf of Maine and the many tributaries feeding it, also the craggy 3,478 miles of shoreline sculpted by nature and time and the endless collection of uninhabited islands.  Coastal Maine is unique, gorgeous, mysterious and a national treasure.  What could be a better carrot to help us remain positive, upbeat and diligent?

Something really remarkable and powerful occurred simultaneous with the diagnosis.  The prayers, love, cards, notes, food, visits and good wishes that we have been the beneficiaries of were overwhelming.  The kindness extended by so many has had an uplifting and sustained positive effect while adding to our strength and resolve.  Casual relationships have grown into meaningful friendships while deep friendships grew into a brother or sister type bond.  Most cancer patients would be hard pressed to find something positive to say about this miserable disease and its effective, but debilitating treatment..  Forming, growing or solidifying a friendship is definitely one of those benefits.

While the illness would delay our usual mid-June departure this year, in April I targeted a departure date of the second week of August.  Deep inside with all the variables associated with treatment and recovery, the unknowns and the fact any little bump in the road could derail progress and the departure by days to weeks.  There were serious private and unspoken concerns about seeing Maine this summer.

This was especially true when I was readmitted to the hospital for three days on June 25 with AFib and pneumonia.  It was a 72 hour psychedelic fog of medication induced hallucinations, confusion and fear.  It was to be the absolute worst period of my life, made better of course by Kim's presence only partially and uncomfortably asleep in the chair next to my hospital bed.

MUSC Doctors Eric Lentsch, John Kaczmar and Jennifer Harper, along with their team members, were sensational while their empathy was always on display.  All three have become friends and have earned a lifetime of respect.  We wouldn't have had them, or the warp speed fast track we were on, without the quarterbacking of our MUSC friend a fellow mariner, Dr. Claudio Schonholz.  Claudio instantly opened doors, getting us to all the right people, STAT!

When we were married nearly 40 years ago, we were mature adults with no tangible assets between us, but we had an unwaveringly strong belief in ourselves and our future.  I saw Kim as the kind, thoughtful, good hearted and strong willed, when required, person she is.  She has always been my inspiration and motivator to reach higher and try harder.  When it comes to recovery, there is no way my progress would be this advanced without her deep devotion, unwavering love, constant guidance, enforcement and reinforcement.

Under the command of Captain Eli Bliss, ten days ago Dutch made the voyage from Charleston to Portland, Maine where she now sits in the historic downtown Old Port Harbor.  First time she's gone anywhere when we weren't at her helm.

That brings us to this moment, 7:00am, Tuesday August 14th, exactly five months to the day since the diagnosis.  Kim has the window seat and 8 pound Lacey is asleep in her travel carrier under the seat in front of me.  Delta flight 2687 is taxiing to Charleston Airport's runway 33. We'll be in Portland before noon and on board Dutch by 12:30.

Thank you for bringing us to this moment to help make this carrot a reality.

Randy & Kim

Lacey

Dutch