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    Standing Tall: On One Leg
    Standing Tall: On One Leg
    Standing Tall: On One Leg
    Ebook139 pages1 hour

    Standing Tall: On One Leg

    By Joel Soupkup and Kathy Soupkup

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    About this ebook

    When Joel Soukup was diagnosed with osteosarcoma at the age of sixteen, the diagnosis changed him and his family forever. This family traveled down an unknown path and emerged from their journey in a way they never expected. Read how this young patient and his family handled the devastating diagnosis with strength, love, and faith in God.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherWestBow Press
    Release dateApr 10, 2013
    ISBN9781449790813
    Standing Tall: On One Leg
    Author

    Joel Soupkup

    Kathy Soukup was born and raised in Minnesota and resides near the town of Pine River. She and her husband, Verdale, have raised three sons and now have six grandchildren. Kathy continued to work, mostly part time, during the years her sons were growing up. She now enjoys spending more time enjoying outdoor activities, as well as quilting, gardening, cooking, visiting with friends and neighbors, and spending time with her grandchildren. Joel Soukup grew up in northern Minnesota near the town of Pine River. He is the youngest of three boys. Joel is attending college at St. Cloud State University in central Minnesota and will soon receive his degree in community psychology. He hopes to use his education and experience to help others who have been handed an unforeseen, life-altering diagnosis such as the one he received at the age of sixteen. When he is not busy with school, he enjoys outdoor activities and sports, hanging out with friends, watching movies, listening to music (especially attending concerts), and rebuilding motorcycles with his brother.

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      Book preview

      Standing Tall - Joel Soupkup

      Copyright © 2013 Kathy Soukup..

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

      WestBow Press

      A Division of Thomas Nelson

      1663 Liberty Drive

      Bloomington, IN 47403

      www.westbowpress.com

      1-(866) 928-1240

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      Cover photo credits: Adventure Studios and Essentia Health

      Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

      Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

      ISBN: 978-1-4497-9080-6 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4497-9079-0 (hc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4497-9081-3 (e)

      Library of Congress Control Number: 2013906121

      WestBow Press rev. date: 04/05/2013

      Dear God:

      Your company is my redeemer,

      and you raise me up.

      Saving me from this life,

      that has beaten me up.

      You’ve been there for me when I needed you,

      and that’s all I can ask…

      I know you’ll be there in my future,

      ’cause you’ve been there in my past.

      —

      Joel Soukup, January 14, 2008

      Table of Contents

      Preface

      Chapter 1

      Chapter 2

      Chapter 3

      Chapter 4

      Chapter 5

      Chapter 6

      Chapter 7

      Chapter 8

      Chapter 9

      Chapter 10

      Chapter 11

      Chapter 12

      Chapter 13

      Chapter 14

      Chapter 15

      Chapter 16

      Chapter 17

      Chapter 18

      Chapter 19

      Chapter 20

      Chapter 21

      Chapter 22

      Epilogue

      Appendix 1: Time Line

      Appendix 2: Calendars For 2003, 2004, And 2007

      PREFACE

      Our youngest son, Joel, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer, at age sixteen. We were in a state of shock as we sat in that small exam room and listened to the doctors share their diagnosis with us. We listened, dazed and numb, as they explained what the plan of treatment would be, when treatment would start, and what effects it could possibly have on our son. We had never met so many doctors in such a short time, and up to this point, we had never heard so many medical words that we didn’t understand. It didn’t take long for me to realize I needed to start writing things down.

      My journal was a yellow legal pad, and the first entry was made on April 4, 2003. Most days, for nearly a year, there was something of significance to write down. Some days there was a lot to record. Some days just a word or two said it all. By the end of that year, my yellow legal pad journal was full.

      After Joel had recovered from the grueling year of chemotherapy, surgeries, and recuperation, I put my journal aside and we went on with life as best we could. I remember saying more than once that someday I was going to write a book.

      When the cancer reappeared four and a half years later, Joel was encouraged to keep a journal. He kept a marvelous record of his day-to-day thoughts, his disappointments, pain (both physical and emotional), his hopes and goals for the future, and his determination to conquer this cancer beast one more time.

      Now Joel and I both had a journal with a story to tell, and we both believed that this story could help others, young or old, facing a cancer diagnosis or any other major medical problem. The time was right for both of us to go forward with our plan and write his story. The story takes place over a ten-year time span in which Joel matures from a sixteen-year-old childhood cancer patient to a young man with a bright future and an eagerness to live life to the fullest.

      In this book, portions written by Joel are shown separately from my writing. These accounts were penned by Joel for this book or were drawn directly from his journals.

      When Joel and I searched through our journals and together arranged this story, we both relived some of the toughest days, weeks, and months of our lives. We soon realized that during the time Joel had been suffering and fighting for his life, we had also gained a great deal more than we could ever imagine. We realized then, and realize now, that there are no guarantees in life, that it is very precious, and that for some it can be much too short. We knew then we needed to rely on our Lord to get us through each day, and we know now that we still need to rely on our Lord each day for the strength He continues to give.

      We both hope that this book can be a blessing to those who read it and that they will be inspired to keep fighting, not give up, and let the Lord be their strength.

      Kathy Soukup

      CHAPTER 1

      I recall sitting in church one Sunday morning listening to our priest, Father Bruce, describe how our life is pretty much like a one-way ticket in that it takes us on a journey we know nothing about. We know our own history and where and when our journey began, but we have no idea where we are going. We know as Christians what our goal should be—we want our journey to end in heaven. However, we are totally unaware of the wonderful experiences we may have along the way or what bumps and battles we may face as we venture on in life. If we knew what lies ahead for us, would we be able to continue on this mysterious trip, or would we want to turn back, get a different ticket, and try a new road or a different path?

      I’m glad I didn’t know what was ahead for me as I ventured ahead on my life’s journey. If I had known, I might have tried to turn back or convince God that He gave me the wrong ticket, saying, Certainly, God, this ticket leads to more bumps and battles than You intended for me or my family to endure. But God doesn’t make mistakes.

      God gave me a wonderful, loving husband, Verdale, with whom to share my journey. God entrusted us with three wonderful sons, Daniel, Jacob, and Joel. In our typical family from a small town, we were truly enjoying our lives as parents and as members of our church and small community. Our sons kept us active in school events, and we kept ourselves active in the community and in our church. Aside from all our busyness, though, every year we tried to take our sons on a vacation to enjoy some downtime as a family.

      On March 31, 2003, we had just returned from a week’s vacation in southern Florida with family friends. It had been a wonderful week, complete with snorkeling in the Keys, numerous days on the beach, and boating in the ocean. All of us were nicely tanned, refreshed, and ready to resume our busy work schedules and normal school and family routines.

      The first thing on my to-do list when we got home was to make a doctor appointment for Joel, our youngest son, who was sixteen. Prior to our vacation, he had started talking about a pain in his groin area. I had asked him if he wanted to see the doctor before we went on our vacation, but we decided we should wait until we got back—maybe it would get better while we were vacationing. The pain was still bothering him when we got home, however, so I made an appointment for April 3 with our physician, David Laposky.

      Joel insisted to Dr. Laposky that something did not feel right, so he ordered an MRI for the next day. I had to reschedule the appointment for April 7 and actually considered canceling it completely because I was pretty sure it was just a pulled muscle or growing pains. But again, thanks to Joel’s persistent sense that something was wrong, I kept the appointment as scheduled. So on April 7, I took Joel to our local hospital (which is forty miles away) where he had the MRI. He was back in school that morning by ten thirty. He enjoyed school and did not want to miss any more than was necessary.

      That same day, Dr. Laposky received the MRI results from the hospital, and his nurse called to have us meet in his office to review them. I still thought this was no big deal, so I didn’t think it would be necessary to call Verdale at work and have him meet us at the clinic. But I did call the school and left a message for Joel to meet me at the clinic at four o’clock.

      [Joel’s account:] The pain I was feeling was located in my right pelvis area, on the inside of my right hip. It was a strange feeling, like nothing I had ever felt before; it sort of felt how I assumed a pulled muscle would feel. It was a constant throbbing pain that was never very intense, but at the same time, nothing I did made it feel any better. I had never had any medical problems up until this point, not one broken bone or torn muscle. My thoughts were that it had to be a pulled muscle. I mean, what else could it be?

      Joel stayed after school that day, as he did most days, so he could lift weights and work out in the weight room. I was always very proud of our sons and how healthy and athletic they were. Joel took a break from his workout and met Dr. Laposky and me at the clinic.

      Joel came bouncing into the clinic wearing his gym clothes, looking as healthy and happy

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