This picture of Tommy was at Justin and Jen Brennon's house in Temecula, California.Lydia dated this picture with some notes--the beginning of July '03. This was a strange time.
During that year, we hosted our second group from Stuttgart, Germany.
The exchange had some strange problems, and I don't choose to talk about those specifically, but it was enough to make me consider what would happen while in Germany.
I can discuss one aspect. We had at least five or six Islamic students in the group, and one was not friendly toward Americans at all. The young man had an interesting attitude about the whole thing, considering that he was a guest. Another girl from the former Yugoslavia, had an interesting way to make a bit of extra spending money in the parking lot of the school. My friend informed me after the group returned home.
The German teacher had told me that he was shocked how much money she seemed to have, because her parents immigrated to Germany to escape the effects of unstable conditions in the Balkans. It was an embarrassment to me.
My group had its share of problems too. I dropped one young student, telling her that she should wait until the next exchange. The war in Iraq happened that year, so given the problems I had determined, I knew it would be even more complicated in Germany.
The previous exchange took place during the summer before the destruction of the Twin Towers in New York City, and while we were in Germany, we cashed checks one day at an American Express place in downtown Stuttgart. While there, a group of six or seven Islamic males sent large amounts of money to Canada. After the tragedy in New York, I contacted officials immediately, but they told me that they had already been aware of the problem with those men that day.
I felt uneasy in '03, just before the end of the school year. Considering everything that worried me, I called the group--both parents and students--in the early spring and cancelled the excursion. I just felt uneasy about it, and I always go by my feelings in things like this.
There were parents that were very angry about the whole thing, even though my decision was sound. I placed my concerns before them, and I told them that I would not take the risk. We made plans to go the next year, and I promised them that I would do it.
After school, I went to a doctor. I had not been feeling well, and I had had some trouble with my right hip. Ann went with me to the appointment. When I said that I wanted to wait for surgery, the doctor said something interesting: "You must not be in enough pain yet."
I had been in pain. It didn't take long. Ann usually doesn't insist on much, but she did in this case. The operation was set for July 2, 2003, which is the day of my dad's birthday.
The uneasiness didn't stop. I really felt uneasy. I didn't think I would survive the thing.
Lydia and Jeff were in town about that time, and they planned to have the baby blessed in church in early July. I was unable to attend, because I was still in the hospital.
Everything seemed to be alright, but then at the end of the month, while Ann was presenting at a conference in Boise called Edufest, I developed clots in my right leg and lungs. It was actually a miracle that I survived the clots.
They admitted me into the hospital, and while there, doctors determined that I had a very aggressive form of leukemia--AML. My oncologist told me to get my life in order, because the chances of survival were less than 25%. He gave me six months.
Chemotherapy began in August. I missed the next two trimesters of school, returning in March of '04 for the last trimester.
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