Letters from the Land of Cancer

A look at the book by Walter Wangerin Jr., Zondervan Publishers, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2010
Wangerin faces his own mortality when he learns that he has been diagnosed with cancer. In a series of interspersed meditations and 22 letters he writes about the journey; of course in the writing of his letters he does not know how the battle with cancer is going to play out, or as many people with cancer tell us, ever will.
I enjoyed the book and found many things worth exploring even before I should learn of any life-threatening illnesses. Perhaps the most basic message I took from reading this book is to enjoy ever present moment of life to its fullest, whether it is in a positive or negative context. In some ways I think the old adage, ‘can’t cry over spilled milk’ was spelled out when he talks about how he wanted to live in the present, and continue his work – and continue his work he did. In a later letter he briefly talks about how, his cancer enabled his work. In another letter he
talks about how cancer hindered him from keeping the balance in his life, he became too weak to keep the ‘bad’ from being corralled by the ‘good.’
Since I’m not a very good reviewer, I think I’ll just highlight some of the
advice that I received from his book. ‘To consider earnestly a life undefined by death, a life defined by nothing except Life alone changes all our values, all relationships. It simplifies the self and time and purposes.’ [pg.85] …I’m not sure I’m interpreting the authors thoughts correctly, but to me I says that when we stop living life with death as an ever present influence and accept death as a reality that does not end life, but only becomes the gateway to eternal life, then we can get on with living Life to its fullest, perhaps as Christ means life to be lived here. ‘Cancer does not give me freedoms others don’t have.’[pg.114] Often in life extend unwarranted excuses for people because of their age or disabilities, here the author is saying that just because he has cancer he is not excused from the psychological, mental or spiritual responsibilities that everyone faces. ‘If Christ is raised nothing else matters. If Christ is not raised nothing matters’[pg.158] This was written at a time when his illness was increasing. To a student in one of his classes who asked him the question how he was handling his cancer he replied, ‘I hold death lightly in my hands.’[pg.167] This was perhaps for me the profound thought in the whole book and he took a whole chapter to explain it which I thought was brilliant; its worth the price of the book for this chapter alone. ‘Surely it’s high time, isn’t it, that we pay as much attention to the blessings of a long affliction as we do to the pain for which we curse it.’[pg.196] For often the blessings that are fruits of an affliction are buried in pity, suffering or as the author says, ‘drugged away.’ This brought to mind the Apostle Paul’s talk about the ‘Fellowship of Sharing in His Suffering.’[Php.3:10]. ENJOY THE BOOK!