I’ve avoided writing about this, simply because it’s just too difficult. It’s not fun or pleasant to write about the tough situations we are going through in life. I’d much rather write about fun, happy things, but the reality is, even though we are Christ followers, and live daily in the knowledge that there is nothing we go through that is not first cleared with God Himself, the fact remains that life is hard. The Nagle family has been going through some hard times for the last year or so.
My husband’s father passed away early last year, my husband was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma last June and completed several weeks of radiation. He is now in remission, for which we are so grateful, but we still have that looming thought, “When is it going to come back?” in our minds every day. In February of this year, my husband’s brother, Bill, was diagnosed with nasopharyngeal cancer. The doctors said it was in Stage 4. He has undergone massive amounts of chemotherapy and radiation, but the cancer has spread. It has now taken over not only his throat, but his lungs, sternum, spine, and brain. He had a stroke Friday. They performed surgery Saturday morning to drain fluid from behind his right eye, so that some of the pressure could be relieved and to allow him to move his eye again. He made it through the surgery, and as soon as he is stable, they will send him home. He is now on oxygen and there is talk of putting him on a ventilator. Arrangements are being made for hospice to come in and help take care of him once he gets home. They are giving him 6 months to live. My brother in law is 64 year old. His cancer, according to his doctors, is a direct result of being exposed to Agent Orange while he was serving our country in Vietnam.
From the left: Bill Nagle, Jeremy Nagle, and Mike Nagle. Sitting is Bill Nagle Sr, also known as “Pops” to Bill and Mike, “Pap” to Jeremy.
I will share parts of a letter that I sent to my family members this morning:
“Mike is leaving early tomorrow morning to go to Salisbury, Maryland, where Bill lives. He has a connecting flight in Charlotte, NC, where he will meet his sister, Bonnie, who is flying in from Tampa. Together they will fly to Maryland. He is planning on staying until Sunday. As he started packing last night, we talked about the possibility of Bill passing away while Mike is up there, at which point he will just stay for the funeral. He had to pick out a suit, tie and shirt, and I will take those up there with me for the funeral if I have to go up alone. That was very hard for Mike, but he knew he needed to do it, just in case. I’ll take them to the cleaners to be pressed, so that everything will be ready.”
To say that my husband is devastated is a huge understatement. This latest report on Bill is overwhelming for him, and it has him wondering how much more he can take. My letter to family ended with this:
“I feel totally helpless, and I worry about how much more he can take. If I could just do something, anything, to ease his pain, just for a little while, I would gladly do it. This man, who consistently gives to others, needs relief, needs comfort, needs strength, and there’s not a thing I can do to help him. I can only pray, and ask others to pray with me. This man I love needs prayer right now, he needs the saints to go to the Father and intercede on his behalf for peace and strength and comfort. I need to know that the people I love most in this world will do this for me, and for Mike.”
I cannot begin to tell you how much it means to me that I have a family that I can freely go to and ask for prayer, knowing that immediately they will stop what they are doing and approach God the Father with our requests. I know that I take this for granted, having been raised in a Christian environment, but I will always be eternally grateful for my brothers, sisters, children, nieces, nephews, and in-laws who pray for us, and with us.
I'm also taking this opportunity to ask that if you read this, you will pray for my husband, Mike, and our family. We are people who believe in the power of prayer, and right now, we need all the power of prayer we can get. Thank you. May God bless each of you.
