I'm Ready for Lightning

I returned from Austin late last night, connecting through Denver. The scheduled plane to Orange County had been struck by lightning on its inbound flight to Denver, so the United engineers grounded the aircraft to inspect it thoroughly. After a delay of two hours, they found a replacement airplane and we made our way back over the snowy Rockies to the OC. It's Friday morning now, and after a three day absence from campus I have only a few hours to check my mail, collect term papers to grade over the weekend, and meet with with a lecturer about a case of student plagiarism. It's a typical half-day. The afternoon is different, though, because at 1 pm I'm supposed to be sitting in the infusion center with a needle in my arm. I will begin another two cycles of chemo that will stretch over the next six weeks. Four infusions, four recoveries. Definitely not fun, but I'm thankful that I can anticipate the chemo more or less without dread. Indeed, I welcome the chemicals because I need their terrible toxicity. I need the lightning strikes that will take out the rogue cells that threaten my life. I want to keep flying, long and far.