Sunday, July 14, 2019

Sunday, July 14, 2019

Tonight's picture was taken in July of 2009. Mattie was off chemo by this point and all of his surgeries were behind him. For a VERY short period of time, we were under the delusion that treatment was over, and we could focus upon rehabilitation. Of course, I know much more about cancer now, and in hindsight, I realize Mattie was never going to have NO EVIDENCE of DISEASE. Mainly because treatment did not cause his tumors to disappear. Therefore, he was always living with disease inside of him even when it was undetectable by scanning. 

This photo showed Mattie working hard with Anna, his physical therapist. They had a special bond. Anna got to know Mattie quickly and assessed what she had to do to get him to actively participate in therapy. It typically involved games and bugs. Do you see the big plastic roach on the floor? Mattie had to try to walk to it, to pick it up, and then most likely would used it to freak me out. Which was the anticipated reaction Mattie was looking for!


Quote of the day: It is an absolute human certainty that no one can know his own beauty or perceive a sense of his own worth until it has been reflected back to him in the mirror of another loving, caring human being. ~ John Joseph Powell

Tomorrow will mark our 24th wedding anniversary. In honor of the occasion, we went out yesterday to have lunch at Chez Francois. This restaurant is located in Great Falls, VA. It is a one of a kind restaurant and experience. I absolutely love their outdoor terrace, which is surrounded by farms (in which many of the vegetables and herbs are grown for the restaurant) and greenery. Before heading out, Peter snapped a photo of me on our deck at home. 

This is the terrace at Chez Francois. It is truly bucolic. I always felt that Monet would have appreciated this setting and I can just imagine his impressionist interpretation of this space. What you can't see is the fountain. So you hear that sound, the sound of birds, and always see MANY butterflies floating by!

See the fountain behind Peter? The restaurant is special. The service is old world, they provide you with a four course meal, and you are NEVER rushed. You don't hear others talking or loud noises either. It is truly peaceful and serene. 

You can see some of the greenery around us!

Our waiter snapped this photo of us before lunch began. 

In honor of our anniversary, they treated us to this wonderful meringue, surrounded by raspberry sauce and chocolate ice cream! Honestly the meringue is so special, like no other I have tried.