It has been a nearly perfect Easter weekend. We had most of our family at the house Sunday, plus some of our extended family.

I haven't reported on Tammy with her cancer treatments lately. She said she is doing fine.

She and her mother took off at around 6:00 a.m. Wednesday morning for an all-day chemo treatment. She took around four hours in the veins and four hours in the port. All went well with the newly installed port.

Tammy said she had to roll like a washing machine as the port poured in the chemo.

I really hadn't looked up what they are pouring into my child, but it must be strong stuff. The doctor said it kills the good and bad blood cells.

It seems the bad cells take in more of the chemo than the good ones, and the good ones regroup faster than the bad ones. The doctor said that this is the treatment that has done best. Tammy has several more to go.

If you see Tammy out, which she has been going about one-half day before she gives out, she will be wearing a cap or a hat. The first chemo got most of her thick brown hair.

I hurt her feelings a few days ago by saying she looks like her Aunt Una.

Aunt Una had a disorder that made her hair come out. She was nearly bald. You can bet I won't say that any more.

There has been one side effect of my first wife's illness. Her hair is coming out by the hand fulls. No fear, both Tammy and Betty Jo have both ordered wigs for when they get tired of caps or hats.

If the chemo will do what it is supposed to do on Tammy, we can deal with the loss of hair.

Tammy is a lot like her mother. She is sweet and tough. That is not a bad combination.

As I said, it was a good weekend. Donna and Mason made it home from their home in the mountains of Canton. It's always good to have them in the South.

Garrett came down from Albany to be with us all Easter.

Betty Jo and I were changing the colors at the church on the two crosses late Saturday night from the black of Good Friday to the white of Easter morning.

All my immediate bunch of our Richardsons, Uva and our nearest friends, Spud and Pat Bush, came to dine with us for Easter lunch at the Toole house.

After lunch, we had a 53 egg Easter Egg hunt in the yard. The children found all but two of the eggs. Each one had some change inside. They are still looking for that $100 egg. Must be one of the two not found.

We had a full house at church Easter Sunday. That thrills the hearts of the regulars that come every Sunday, Wednesday and prayer days.

A tradition at our church during Sunday School is for the youth to change an Old Rugged Cross that is filled with holes into a thing of beauty by placing spring flowers into each of those ugly holes.

It reminds us of what our Christ went through on Friday, giving his life's blood for each of us. He made something beautiful from an ugly cross by giving us the choice of eternal life in heaven over death and the grave.

This past year, and going into this year, has been right trying for our crew. It makes being threatened and shot at seem minor over nearly losing my mate of 54 years and my children having diseases that could take their lives. It would be easy to get into a pity party by just thinking of ourselves, but that is impossible with the family and friends that we have.

Doctors and nurses are wonderful. Taking out bad parts of us seems bad. Recovery seems so far away at times, but prayer from so many individuals, groups, churches and people and places that we will never know about is the best of all. Prayer is the most powerful thing that we humans have to offer each other.

Our friends and kin have done so much more. I just hope we live long enough to repay a portion of the love shown to us.

This is the real meaning of Easter. God is good all the time.