An Owl Among the Ruins

A new direction for I Have Serious News...

Canaletto, Capriccio of Roman Ruins with a Church and the Colleoni Monument (1754)

If you have been a reader of my Substack, I Have Serious News..., or my Revue blog, Cancer Journal, thank you for reading me. Some news. First, I’m consolidating this writing here on Substack.

Second, I am taking I Have Serious News... in a new direction. The first serious news was that I had cancer. Then came the prognosis that I had “months, not years.” Well, not entirely; 18 months later — and thank you, pembrolizumab — I’m still alive. I will use the gift of time to write about living with cancer and, if it comes to that, dying from it.

I will be writing as an epidemiologist and as a Christian. Think Psalm 102:6,

I have become a desert owl, an owl among the ruins.

Desert air is clear, and cancer can give life an austere beauty. I want to explore that with you. There will be religion, and there will be science too. I have an article on my cancer journey that will be in Mockingbird Magazine, a community for thoughtful people of faith; more on that soon.

I have been sustained and guided by many interactions with readers. Please comment or write. Thank you.