Twice our family has been the grateful recipient of a “Wish.” Make-A-Wish graciously supplied Greg with state-of-the-art camera equipment and photography lessons while Jackie (and family) enjoyed a trip-of-a-lifetime to have a “food experience” in Rome. What a wonderful program! It wasn’t just the wish, it was a blessing for the entire family to feel the love and concern for others that generously donate time and money to bring this burst of light into the lives of children whose lives are at risk.

Mark and I were granted a “wish” of sorts this spring. In February I received a call from the Swing for Cancer Foundation offering us a free Mediterranean cruise! Our friends had sent in our name and cancer experiences and we had been chosen as one of three recipients to cruise the Mediterranean in May. We just needed to get ourselves to Rome and home again. Yes! We accept!

The timing of all of this intrigues me still – but before I discuss that I will give a brief travelogue.

We decided to arrive almost a week early to visit Rome and Greg decided it would be fun to join us. It was fun – though incredibly crowded. Our final day was our favorite when we escaped the crowds and took a train through the countryside to Tivoli Gardens. Absolutely stunning! Ideal weather! Very few tourists! We were mesmerized by the beauty and almost hate to tell anyone about it for fear of spoiling the experience for others seeking respite from the crowds.

Our cruise took us to Cyprus, Greece, Turkey, Pompeii, and almost to Israel. Israel was meant to be the highlight of our vacation. Sidenote – we had booked an Israeli tour in 2019 which was postponed multiple times for COVID. We finally took our full refund and sadly missed the opportunity to see Israel which has been on my bucket list for oh-so-long. So the three days /two nights scheduled for Israel couldn’t really replace the two weeks we had anticipated, but still we were excited. As our cruise ship approached we were informed that we would not be able to dock as anticipated because of the escalating violence. We went to a port farther north and our tour was quickly rearranged to include all sites but with long bus rides instead of hotel nights. That worked for us.

Well, the violence continued to escalate but they did allow everyone off the ship long enough to go through immigration and return. We were told we would be able to disembark the following day, but by the time everyone completed immigration we were once again headed out to sea. The cruise line’s international security deemed it unsafe. There were five days of violence and our three days fell right in the middle of it all. They made up for it by sending us to Santorini and Crete which were fun… not quite Israel, but a good experience.

One of my favorite adventures occurred on our final day. We disembarked and had a full day before flying home, so we stayed in Ladispoli, a seaside town between the port and the airport. While there we chose to visit Cerveteri, an Etruscan Necropolis. Thousands of ancient tombs, but no tourists. In two or three hours we saw only two other couples. We were thoroughly intrigued by what we saw but mostly enjoyed the quiet solitude. It was therapeutic for country folk like us to get away from the crazy crowds of the cruise. This video captures the quiet.

Our favorite cruise destination turned out to be Esphesus, Turkey. It was the spot to which we said we would love to return. Our favorite result of the cruise? New friends… we met some of the nicest people, mostly from the same family. They let us crash their dining table which at first made us uncomfortable. That discomfort lasted less than one day at which point we simply joined their family and enjoyed their company the rest of the time.

Another highlight of the cruise was Gentri, The Gentlemen Trio. I have enjoyed their music from a distance but up close they have become one of my favorites. Their talent is obvious, but their manners are what won me over. They really were gentlemen. The “unsung” star of the show (to me) was their pianist, Stephen Nelson. He is incredibly talented and I believe that he puts togethers all of the arrangements for the group. He does not like the spotlight, but he did share a few of his stories. Mark and I were both touched as he told of a very dark time in his life and how the words to Believe came to him all at once as though by revelation. It has become one of our favorite songs and has even deeper meaning for us these past two months!

One more thing about Stephen. We were able to attend several of their concerts during the cruise. Twice he performed a bit of an upscale parlor trick. Two of the “gents” would go out and ask two random audience members for a musical request. One was to request a musical score from a movie and another was to request a pop song. After the gents shared two or three jokes, Stephen was able to perform a completely new song which would be a combination of the two. I have a partial recording of the second time I saw this – I wish that I had remembered to catch the whole thing. It was amazing. Even more so this time because when the request came for “The Godfather” Stephen was at his piano hurriedly trying to listen to it on his phone. Here is my video – can you hear the pop song that emerges?

The Timing – looking back this is the most cool part about receiving this cruise. Here are a few key moments:

1. In April I received my final infusion (yes, I will someday write about all of that) and exactly three days before we left I began to feel better than I had in over a year.

2. Just days before leaving we received word that a recent colonoscopy had left Mark with a diagnosis of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. There wasn’t time to see the doctor before the cruise so we decided to not tell anyone and enjoy our three weeks without knowing anything more than that. As soon as we got home we learned that his type of lymphoma is “marginal zone” and we didn’t need to worry… just watch.

3. This terrible tumor which currently plagues us began to show symptoms about two weeks after we returned and you know the story from there.

For us, this cruise with the wonderful sights, new friends and precious time together was truly a Tender Mercy (capitalized). And for our next “wish” – well, next we need a miracle! Thank you to everyone for the prayers and fasting on our behalf. I pray in return for all of you! Much LOVE!