we are going to take a break from all the fluff and nonsense you usually read here. sorry. and mom, i don't want to make you cry but this is on my heart and we need some prayers, ok?

my mom has a brother named randy. he's a great guy, a big guy and even bigger in my memories as a child.  they tell all kinds of stories about randy in my family. growing up his nickname was "animal." apparently he ate so much and grew so fast and did everything so aggressively and loud, the name "animal" just kind of fit.

randy joined the air force when i was a kid and flew off to make a man of himself. i didn't see him much after that, he lives in california now and does some top secret work there in the desert. he married a great lady who is also loud and gregarious and fun, they make a great couple.

a couple years ago...gosh, was it just a couple years? i'm not really sure. anyway, they found a very aggressive and rare form of cancer in my uncle. he went through really nasty treatments and a bunch of nasty surgeries...they removed all kinds of parts and rebuilt parts inside him and then they would find it again and he'd have to go through it all again. this went on and on until randy finally didn't have the cancer anymore. his hair grew back. his appetite came back. he went back to the job he loves.

and along the way, i believe my uncle randy found God.

how do i know this? well. last week they found the cancer had not really gone away at all. in fact, the cancer traveled through his bloodstream and took on his lungs and is aggressively having its way with randy's recovering body. they have a name for this cancer, it's long and ugly. but basically, it's the kind of cancer that just keeps traveling and attacking, traveling and attacking. you can't operate it out, and radiation is not an option. there is a 12% chance this cancer will ever be beaten.

12%.

my family is devastated. randy has already gone through SO MUCH. more than i could ever bear. and to hear that he will be battling cancer for as long as he lives? that just...sucks.

but randy? he is upbeat. he is ready to take it on. he is comforting family, encouraging his wife and planning thanksgiving dinner with my mom and her husband. he is not throwing a pity party. he is not screaming and kicking. he is the calm in the face of the storm. he wants to help the scientific community on their journey to find a cure for cancer by offering himself as a science experiment-- a guinea pig for cancer and all the experimental drugs they can throw at him.

my heart just hurts for my uncle. but i am also in awe of him. his selfless courage and amazing grace make me want to be a better person. i don't know for sure where uncle randy is in his walk with God, but from here, it looks like he's riding on His shoulders. nothing else explains it. and that makes me smile through my tears. randy is a fighter, an "animal." if anyone is going to kick ass for that 12%, it's him.

thanks for your prayers, everyone. they DO make a difference.