Reflection 42: An Abstract on "Brian's Story"

Within the last two-weeks, I was asked for a favour and write on an impending book on cancer by someone I know very well. I agreed. I am choosing an Abstract of Brian's Story. An Abstract offers a sense of what the work is about without labouring and thereby discouraging the reader who first lays eyes on it, perhaps in a bookstore. In other words, what is the heart of the book?

Brian's Story is not a medical book. Instead, it deals with a full range of human emotions after experiencing the diagnosis of head and shoulder cancer, through the operation and radiation therapy to recovery. Above all else, the text is very personal. It tells the story of a regular joe who used to carry a black tin lunchbox around, along with a pocket protector and a slide ruler when such items were fashionable. In this tale, he is not yet at the end of the journey. He has not been declared cancer free by the medical establishment. The best evidence suggests that declaration can be made only after five years. But he has hope and a firm conviction that he will get it.

Reading chapter-by-chapter, it is very tempting to summarize his work as a journey. But I won't. To me, that is terribly cliche. Instead, metamorphosis is a closer description. Cancer causes life-altering changes. The author went from one stage in his life and is adjusting to a different one, like a caterpillar to a butterfly going through its metamorphosis. I like that image. I can readily appreciate it. I am confident that you, the reader, will see that as well. As you read through this book, it is easy to see that he is changing from his old comfortable self to a new one. Like an untested pair of shoes, the new reality does not fit well or feel very good at the moment. That takes time. That is what this novel, Brian's Story, is all about, becoming content with his new reality. This work is also about a successful recovery and how that comes about more readily. In a nutshell, recovery is the last and most crucial stage of the metamorphosis. It involves four parts. I am labelling the four as faith, hope, love and sharing. The balance of my task in writing this Abstract for you is to examine each of these labels.

FAITH

Faith is an essential characteristic in the battle with this life-altering disease. Now, I am not going to write from a religious perspective. That is far too complex, and everyone sees things differently. Also, it is far beyond my capacity and a writer, and you will be at best disappointed with the outcome. I don’t mean blind faith either. No, you will see the particular kind of faith that I am thinking about as each chapter unfolds. You will observe faith in the education system that trained all the people on Sun Wukong's oncology team. Did the education system get it right? I believe that it did. Medical science goes back in Western society to before the Middle Ages. In Eastern culture, for example, China, it is over 5,000 years! Surely, even if we only take into account only trial-and-errors (which we shouldn't), medical science got it correct. Nobody can dispute the fact that the medical knowledge base is growing exponentially.

You will read about faith in the technology. Again, this is a no-brainer. There is no question about this. Technology has always been with man and womankind. One only needs to think of the wheel or the screw. But even if we employ the shallowest of thinking, the last 50 or 60 years has been awe-inspiring and jaw-dropping. I am writing this Abstract for you on an IPad using a wireless portable keyboard. Such tools were not even dreamed of when I was a teenager. Faith in today's technology is vital in the fight against cancer.

HOPE

The second quality seen throughout the chapters is hope. It is true that hope springs eternal. Yes, sometimes cliches are true. Sun Wukong suggests you must wake in the morning and retire in the evening upbeat. Always upbeat, no matter what the news of the day brings. His mind is forever looking to for a happy outcome. He seems to be permanently heartened by events as they present themselves to him. Even adverse events have what people refer to as a silver lining according to him. People encourage him. But he also rallies himself. This is a prerequisite in the recovery process. He expects with confidence. No matter what chapter you flip to, the author's frame of mind is always positive. He pushes doubt aside. It has no place in the metamorphosis. Hope is in his heart and soul. He leaves you with the impression that victory over cancer can and will happen. He simply wills it.

LOVE

I am not thinking about the romantic love. Romeo and Juliet are far from my mind as I write this part of the Abstract. No, I am referring to people who have positive regard for what he is experiencing when the subject of head and neck cancer arises. I see Sun Wukong sitting down, perhaps over coffee and discussing the matter with someone who will listen. When people reach out, he does the same. They may reach out together. He does not walk alone. You never walk alone is the title of a chapter he wrote. There develops a strong bond in the mutual human understanding of each other through questioning and answers. Usually, their meeting starts with curiosity. People are curious. At least those that show interest are. My friend is a college teacher, as am I. We believe being curious is the first step in learning. Both of us encourage curiosity in people. Being inquisitive builds on understanding through questioning. I think that is what both the passerby and my friend share as a mutual goal. The passerby understands what he is trying to say. My friend understands this. It also helps Sun Wukong to verbalize. This puts a frame around and then he analyzes the subject cancer. It puts it into perspective. A more precise meaning of where he has been and where he wants to go begins to surface. They both see this in their dialogue.

All of this usually leads to empathy. A sensitivity develops. Both begin to understand each other. These two end up with an appetite for more because of a good feeling about the conversation.

SHARING

I am writing about sharing last because I believe it ties the other three qualities of Brian's Story together. Indeed, Sun Wukong could go solo on his journey. Anybody can. But based on his experiences described in these chapters, it indeed is not advisable. He concludes that he needs a "cancer buddy." He requires not just anyone, but an individual who is also going through similar thoughts, feelings and emotions. Someone who he can pool their feelings with his. That can only mean that together they end up with a larger emotional pool from which to choose their dialogue references. A constructive conversation from such a shared pool is by far the best way to learn and understand the new reality, the new person. The "cancer buddy" observes and continually comments on the metamorphosis that is taking place in Sun Wukong's life.

So there you have it, dear reader. An Abstract of the soon to be published novel, Brian's Story. Faith, love, hope and sharing are represented in the chapters of this book. All four characteristics are essential to overcoming this life-altering disease. Sun Wukong will then be able to say with confidence; the cancer is in remission.