4 months - 20 boxes

We came to Salt Lake City on November 8th.  After four months, we're finally going home. 

The boxes in the photo - containing all the household gear to run this little apartment - were shipped to Missoula this morning.  We have only to pack the car and drive away after Roger's last clinic appointment on Thursday.  They keep telling us we've gotten off easy.  Many bone marrow transplant patients have a more difficult time of it.  Many stay in the hospital weeks, even months longer than Roger did.  We've been lucky.  And now, luckier still, we get to go home.  And yet. . .

Going home doesn't mean picking up our life where we left off.  There are still plenty of challenges ahead.  Roger's been knocked off his feet by this CMV virus, so beating that is the first priority.  He won't be able to have visitors for awhile yet; the risk of contamination and infection is that great.  Even dust, mold, pollen and spores pose a threat so we'll have to be very careful about not tracking stuff in from the outdoors.  He'll have to go on enjoying the support of friends by phone and email rather than face-to-face for awhile longer, and he'll need to work hard at gaining a little weight and rebuilding his strength.  Eventually, life will begin to feel normal again.

Home.  It will be a rarefied environment and an isolated life for a few weeks longer, but it's HOME!