As I write this, both my parents are still alive.  But I know that one day they will pass.  That’s something we’ll all face.

However, I was not expecting this:

My mother has just had emergency surgery to remove 50% of her colon.  We were subsequently told what they removed was cancerous.  Did they get it all?  Apparently, you don’t get an ‘all clear’; the doctors just tell you not to worry until they tell you to.

The day after we learned about my mother’s condition, my father was diagnosed with a glioblastoma … a brain tumour.  Without treatment, he’ll be dead in a couple of months.  With treatment, he should last nine.  (He elected for the treatment, which starts with radiation and chemo every day for 16 days … plus numerous CT scans and MRIs.)

Finding out both parents have unrelated cancers, 24 hours apart.  It’s scary and depressing and heart-breaking.  But it is what it is, and I must deal.