Denton County Living Well Magazine Summer 2015 | Page 40

A Road Well Traveled

I

By Tina Withrow
met Jimmy during his second cancer crisis. The first was
lymphoma, which he conquered in his early 30s. The
second was sarcoma of his hand in his 40s. Well meaning doctors had told him he would have to have his hand
amputated and he contacted me to discuss his options.

When I told him that there are
always options, he firmly told me
that he was a golfer and guitar
player and that amputating his
hand, just to get rid of his cancer,
was not ever going to happen.
I knew the moment I met him in
person that I liked him. He had
attitude and he cussed like a sailor––and didn’t apologize to anyone for it. I didn’t hold it against
him too much when I found out
he that he was not a Dallas Cowboy fan, but a certified, in your
face, glow in the dark, rabid
Pittsburgh Penguins hockey, and
Notre Dame football fan.

As we came to know and love each other, we also came
to fight like cats and dogs. Me, trying to tell him what to
do, what he needed to do, and him telling me to take a
hike. You see, Jimmy was like a lot of men. His definition
of a man was someone who loved his family, worked hard
to support them and if he couldn’t
do that, then never mind.
Triple bypass, three more cancer
diagnosis and the theme was always the same. No surrender,
no retreat. He became my poster
child for never giving up. I would
have him talk to someone newly
diagnosed or speak at local cancer events. He was living proof
that you can thrive in spite of
what statistics tell you.

The fifth diagnosis came with a
vengeance. After surgery, chemo,
radiation, and more surgery, it
was clear that his treatment plan
was not working. We needed a
plan for his end of life care. When
You could see that while Jimmy
I proposed this to him, he was anwas a ball of fire, so was his
gry! He told me I was giving up
wife Annette, an itty-bitty thing
on him. We made all the needed
with will power and determinaarrangements and called in the
My friend Jim Grande
tion. She loved her husband
troops. Family, friends, neighbors,
and failure was not an option. She
and a good medical team to take
was determined to get him through
care of him at home. I went by one
cancer no matter what it took. She
day to find that he had been playing
could write things down at lightning speed and had lined air guitar, dancing with his wife, and loving on his kiddos.
up her questions that needed to be answered like the best Now, one would think that walking into Jimmy and Annette’s
administrative assistant on the planet. It was never his can- house you would find utter despair and sadness. Not so!
cer, it was their cancer. I came to be in awe of her tenac- Peace, laughter, and acceptance. Grace had replaced the
ity. She was the behind-the-scenes historian, crew chief, anger. In abundance! He asked me to take care of Annette
cheerleader, calm in the storm, wonder woman.
before he left. This story is not about his death, but about his
life, his spunk, his legacy, his in your face, and “Take that,
To see Jimmy wander and roam the cancer center was cancer!” attitude. I shall carry it with me forever.
something. He would organize behind-the \