Author Archive: Jeffrey D. Cole

The Battle Against the World

It feels great to be home.  The last few days have been filled with mostly “normal people stuff,” like unpacking, taking care of the girls, and going for a walk.  We’re adjusting to life back home pretty well so far. …
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My Old Kentucky Home

What often seemed like it would never happen is now reality. We’re home. There really is no place like it.Our journey started early yesterday, May 15, 2014. After waking up about 3:15 am, I headed to the airport for a…
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You Are Here

We are almost there. Home, that is. Kentucky feels so close that I can almost taste the spoonbread. In fact, part of me is already there, thinking of all the things I need and want to do and the things…
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“Why Me?” Revisited

Emmy is only five years old and already she’s learning that life isn’t fair. It’s a hard lesson to learn and even many adults never get it. In her case, it’s serious business. I mean, why does Abrie get to…
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The Found Year

This Saturday, May 10, 2014, marks the one-year anniversary since I was diagnosed with leukemia and admitted to the hospital for the first time. In some ways it seems like a long time ago, but many of the memories of…
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Balancing Act

Today marks one hundred days since I had the stem cell transplant. January 22 doesn’t feel like three-plus months ago, but I guess time flies when you’re having GVHD, er, fun. We were hoping to be back in Kentucky or…
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No Guarantees

The roller coaster ride continues. We thought that it was coming to an end, but instead of stopping we’re going around for another loop.  The Results are In I received the results of last week’s bone marrow biopsy on Friday….
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A Pain in the…

Pelvis, actually. As a connoisseur of corny jokes and puns, I’m fond of referring to bone marrow biopsies as a “pain in the butt,” but actually they are performed in the area of the pelvis just above the waistline where…
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Mile 13

My lungs were on fire. The lactic acid in my legs was building and they begged me to quit. I found a faster song on my iPod shuffle. More motivation. I looked at my Garmin running watch. One mile to…
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The Daily Grind

Some days it feels like two steps forward, one step back. At least that’s still forward progress, right? My frustration comes from a setback with the GVHD in my eyes. For a few days, they were almost normal. But since…
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