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Thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers. There were a number of times, leading up to the procedure and now recovering from it when I felt I can "tap into" this marvelous pool of love and caring. And several times -- as described in
future posts -- when such tapping was deeply helpful.

(It turned out to be two days' recovery in the hospital rather than one, but that was not unexpected. And writing this note is just a quick episode between naps.)

The operation seems to have gone quite smoothly. (I wasn't paying much attention, truth be known.) The inscision site is completely pain free (without any pain medication!), but it's tough to swallow at the moment -- I am told, because of a tube that was down my throat for most or all of the surgery. So that should pass fairly soon.

There are a couple of relatively minor post-operative consequences to the surgery that I will relate later. (After yet another nap.)

Our decision to have the operation done locally by Dr. Chuma feels completely justified -- many of the nurses and medical staff said approving things about the appearance of incision site. And it was so nice that Deb could have friends around her for the surgery and aftermath and dash back and forth to the house to get stuff done and retrieve a few things that I asked for. Things that wouldn't have been possible, say, at Johns Hopkins.

The biopsy samples are off to the lab and results should be available in a few days. The site of the primary tumor is still unknown, but the biopsy samples may help point the way to the culprit.

I understand more clearly now that this operation was merely a step in clearing this cancer -- a huge one, no doubt, but only one. We knew going into this surgery that the material removed from my neck would be unlikely to include the actual primary tumor, but that the amount and location of any cancerous cells found in this area would help in planning the next step.

There will be decisions made in the hunt for the tumor, and radiation applied to zap it. So there is still much road ahead.

I will never adequately be able to tell you how much your writing, your calling, your texting, and most of all your thoughts and prayers have meant to me. I hope you will stay with me on this journey until it reaches its joyful end.