Five months ago Stella and I sat in the Oncology Department of Shaari Tzedek and were told that she  had no chance.

We were told that Stella had stomach cancer that had progressed too far to be operable. The cancer had spread outside her stomach and could not be cured.

We were told that Stella needed immediate chemotherpy. The chemo would make her terribly sick, and the best we could hope for was that it could slow the spread of the disease.

We have lived with an impending nightmare since that moment.

We just came back from a meeting at the hospital.

In the next few weeks, Stella will have an operation.

If successful, she will be cured.

She will be cured.

She will be cured.

(Breathe)

I know and want everyone to understand, that it is major surgery and that there are a lot of risks. First will have to do an exploratory examination. They may find problems not revealed by the latest scans and have to stop.

But they may not. If everything looks good, they will continue the operation.

And then….

She will be cured.

She will be cured.

She will be cured.

(breathe)

What happened in the last five months to reverse the diagnosis?

I think the answer is pretty clear.

If you are reading this, I think you must be one of the thousands of people around the world who have been praying for Tzuriya Kochevet Bat Sarah.

Or maybe you are one of the people who sponsored my bike ride and gave to charity in Stella’s name.

Or maybe you are one of the kind souls who have kept our spirits up with e-mails, comments, visits, and chicken soup.

Whatever you have done, you have helped save Stella’s life.

Thank you.

Now I know we are not quite ready to put on the party hats because it is still too early to do that. There is still more chemo and an operation and a hospital stay and a recovery. We should not get ahead of ourselves because the coast is not clear.

But you know what?

Hell, I’m putting on my party hat now.

And if you think I talk loudly, my heart is screaming out loud right now.

And most importantly.

Thank You G-d.

-Yarden Frankl, Neve Daniel

231 kilometers.

12 hours.

Over 90,000 shekels raised.

Over 1,000 people following on the blog, Facebook, and Twitter.

Countless spirits raised.

What an awesome night.

Read the rest of this entry »

I have gotten several e-mails that say something like this:

Yarden,

I would like to join you for your ride although I am not in shape and have not ridden a bicycle in over ten years. In fact, I am not sure where my bike is or if it has wheels. But I want to be part of your ride.

Hmm…

Let me make a better suggestion.

Stella and I would like nothing more than for all those who have been following our situation to go take a walk on the night of the ride (Thursday, November 10 through Friday, November 11). It makes no difference if you live in Neve Daniel, Maryland, Oklahoma, Ireland, or wherever. Go out for a walk with your spouse, child, friend, or anyone you love.

Don’t talk about work, errands, Mazkirut elections, or so forth. Just focus on how amazing it is to love someone and be loved. Don’t think about the future or the past, for this walk —  just focus on how good the present can be. If you happen to live here, wave when I go by. That would mean much more to me than trying to kill yourself keeping up with a ride that you may not be prepared for.

None of us knows what tomorrow may bring. So let’s take advantage of what we have.

Leave the pedaling to me.

Yarden

We have raised over 50,000 62,000 [Ed.] shekels so far. Thank you. These funds will go to the Gush Etzion Health Fund to help families which are experiencing serious illness here in Gush Etzion. You can still pledge per kilometer, per hour, or make a total pledge by clicking here.

First, if you are new to this blog, let me catch you up.

My name is Yarden Frankl and six years ago I moved from Potomac, Maryland to Neve Daniel, Israel with my wife Stella and our four kids. For six years we have had an amazing life filled with equal loads of satisfaction and pride for our choice to make Aliyah, as well as a whole bunch of fun. As a hobby, I started riding bikes and running really far. Everything was really as good as could be, until…

At the beginning of the Summer, Stella felt a pain in her stomach. A few days later, our worst nightmare became our reality when she was diagnosed with late stage stomach cancer. Since then, our lives have been turned upside down as Stella struggles with cycle after cycle of chemotherapy.

While Stella battles the illness and the chemo as best as she can, I have been left sitting helpless while I watch from the sidelines. Wanting to get up and do something, and also concerned about medical expenses, I decided that I would ride my bike through the night and raise money for the Gush Etzion Foundation’s fund for families like ours struggling with serious illness. More on my decision if you read this post.

So now, what began as a late night thought, as turned into a major campaign. People from all over are pledging their support, and Stella and I cannot thank you enough. Really, we see every pledge that comes in, from close friends to those we have never met. It is extremely moving and even if I said THANK YOU a million times over, it would not be enough. I wrote a form thank you letter but it really cannot describe how moved we are each and every time we see a pledge.

Now, with the ride less than two weeks away, it is time to plan the details.

So here are some of them:

Read the rest of this entry »

I have said before that the nights are the hardest part for me.

I have lain awake countless times at around two or three in the morning, when my strength is gone and keeping the nightmares at bay is just too much.

Eventually, I give up on trying to get back to sleep and just “long for the dawn” as the Psalm (Tehillim 130) says.

On both a literal and figurative level, the battle with cancer is like one long night.

You long for the sun to come up because usually you feel a little more in control when the sun is shining.

You feel a little bit more hope with each new dawn. When Stella is up and we talk, I feel a bit more of a sense of normalcy and can often push the nightmares back into the box where they hide out.

But getting through the night gets harder and harder.

And I am getting really tired.

I’m tired of feeling helpless while Stella fights her courageous battle with the cancer that has turned our lives upside down. Demonstrating love and support and comfort are a given. Of course I do that as much as I can. But I need to do more.

So I have come up with an idea, and I hope you will join me.

Read the rest of this entry »