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     Hey ya'all, how are you? I am doing quite well, thank you. I am feeling pretty good these  days, and walking a lot. I wanted to share the photo above, and am not sure who has seen it. I am not sure if I have published this before or not, but my address here in MN is:

Mark McGrew

campsite number 15

P.O. box 297

Oronoco, MN 55960

     Some have asked where to send correspondence, and since I will be up here for at least 2 more months, this is where you will find me. I will repost my home address about two weeks before I leave here, so everything will roll back over to my home address.

     I had written a blog last night, but somehow I hit a wrong key and lost it all before it could be published. Thank God my mother in law was here. She narrowly prevented me from screaming out the words that come with losing an hour's worth of work, and wit. I settled for "oh you gotta be kidding me"

     Getting to the title... I have a frequent visitor to my campsite.  A SKUNK! The little stinker must be looking for love or something, because when he/she has been around, my eyes water. Maybe soon he will meet the right little skunkette, settle down, and learn how to tune out 90% of what she has to say. If he's lucky. Then again maybe she will appreciate him for making a home for her and provide for her and the kids as well as he can. (that was a joke, he'll never compare to her daddy) Maybe he is already "hooked up" and just needs a break. In that case he is welcome to come around once in awhile. (disclaimer. The comments on the skunk are purely jokes. They do not make reference to anything, anyone, nor do they carry any malice. It is only for the laughs)

    Well, I got the results back from my second biopsy. I scored another "zero" (zero sign of rejection) WOO HOO! All of my blood tests indicate that things are going really well. My weight is dropping, and my blood sugars are beginning to regulate. I am striving to get off of the insulin. It may take some time, but now, I have time, so it is a goal. Hey, Did I mention that today is day 27? Tomorrow will be the completion of week 4!  How cool is that? What God has brought us through is just so humbling. I still can't wrap my mind around what he has done here. It is small in comparison to creating all that we are and know in a weeks time, so I don't guess helping a guy get a new heart is much of a challenge, but wow, all the same. To be individually touched by the hand of God. I will leave you to think about that. Think about when you were (not might have been) touched by the hand of God. Feel the comfort all over again. As always, I love you all. Til' next time.

                                                                                                    mark

     Hey good friends.

     It has never been my habit to read my old blogs, and relive the past. That is not a tradition I am going to begin now. It has, however, occurred to me that we have been through a rough patch together, and I might not have been as upbeat as you deserve to read. So I dedicate this writing to the sharing of great news, a great Big God, and you. My best friends.

     I cannot say anything more appropriate to start this than "PRAISE THE LORD!" I have had this new heart for almost 20 days now. It seems to work pretty well. My EF, at last check was 58%, or pretty much normal for a human being! God is so good! I wish I had real teeth, so I could smile for all it's worth. My pain is mostly gone already, again, Praise God. I am doing very well with my medicines and the immunosupressants  that will be with me for the rest of my life. I have a cherubic, round, red face, from the steroid I am taking, which causes me to do a "double-take" each time I see that stranger in the mirror. I laugh, because, I live! I know there are no guarantees from here on out, but I didn't expect to get this far, so this is all gravy as far as I am concerned.

    More great news. I got my first biopsy results back today... Drumroll please!... I scored a "0"! Zero signs of organ rejection! Oh praise you God!. Folks if you feel halfway decent when your feet hit the floor for the day, I need you to be praising almighty God. I cannot tell you, how alive I feel. Every sensation is alive and firing. (Yes even the gas tank seems full. (sorry)) How can we have come through this without a desire to glorify the "Great I Am". I am not afraid of "jinxing" it by saying "I feel great!" I feel such an intensity of love, happiness, friendship, faith, trust, you name it, it is all about to burst. I have been showered with cards and gifts, and phone calls, from so many of you, that I know I am truly never alone. My life has turned back on track, and we are on the express train to whatever and wherever it goes. Mary had to take off for a couple of days to put the girls back into school, and I am anticipating her return Friday evening. For now, a great family friend, Doug Wicker, is staying with me, and driving me to town on those clandestine runs to Wendy's for a chocolate frosty.(for medicinal purposes, mind you)

     My life is a thing of beauty. I am not writing all this so you can be happy for me, I want you to find hope in my words. Many of us suffering, are looking for that hope, and It would not serve God, if I just took my share and walked away. I have struggled since the transplant, trying to decide just how "happy" to be, and not hurt the hope of others. DUH! I waited a long time, and gained faith through your triumphs and tragedies, and every instance made my faith stronger. I dealt with life and death every bit as real as it gets, and became stronger. Please, use me to strengthen you. You are special too, and good or bad, The answers are waiting for you. If it is not the answer we are seeking, it is because we are not seeking his answer. Guys, remember, life can get better, even as it seems to get worse. My donor was being given his/her chances to accept the lord, or even to say what needed to be said, and whether or not that happened, is not for me to know. I wouldn't want to be a part of rushing that.

     I want to encourage you, as I close, to bow your head, find something, anything, to say to God, and say it. If your heart is hurting, start the healing process. If you have a loved one in need of God's love, pray for them. If you are thankful for something, then scream it out, and wake the neighbors up! God never left, he is still in out hearts, our courthouses, our schools, everywhere. Jesus died for us, the very least we can do is stand up for him!  I truly love you all, and cannot wait to speak with you again. Until then, my prayers are with each one of you. God bless.

                                                                                                                               Mark

     Hi friends and family. I thought I should keep you updated as often as I can because I have been receiving such an outpouring of love and support from all of you. So here goes.

     I have entered week 3 with my new heart. Yesterday was my birthday, I am now 38 years old. It is kind of surreal, because I have based my survival up until transplant, and not so much past that point. No one ever said transplant was easy, and I am not going to be the first. It is scary, beautiful, unsure, tentative, encouraging, emotional, and any number of other emotions one might want to add on. And, oh yeah, painful. If it were easy, though, we would probably be out there swapping organs willy nilly. The irony is that the pain is not what and where one would expect it. I had my chest split open (again), but it is my hands and feet that really hurt. I am swollen with surgical fluids in my abdomen and my legs, but so very happy to be alive.  I mean that.

      One does not appreciate the "dance" with life, until we begin to feel it slip away. Almost any transplant patient will tell you, they were dying when they finally got "the call". I am not sure where I fall in all of this, because I had an LVAD (NO, I DO NOT MISS IT!!!) sustaining my life activities such as blood flow etc. But the act of dying can also be a  thing of beauty. You really learn to notice the little things. You tend to do things based, more on what the impact in the future, and less on the here and now. It is a shame that it takes something like  that to learn to live. Now, I am at the doorstep of a brand new life. I have goals, plans, priorities, desires, wants, and needs that I had totally put aside just to survive. I promised God everyday, that if he brings me through this, like there was ever a doubt that he would, I would serve him for life. And I will. I suppose I should have taken all of my spare time, and made a concrete plan on how this should go, but, then, It wouldn't be my plan, would it? Now the job is to be vigilant, and listen for that still, quiet, call to service. Whether it be speaking, writing, or sweeping a church floor, I am at God's service. That is so liberating to say, and to feel. I feel free at this moment, and so very content in God's love. Folks, please, let him draw close to you. Feel that hug from your past that you long for. Reach for that sense of security that can only come from within the father's arms. I have spent nearly two  weeks in a tail-spin, wondering "what's next?" Well, I figured it out. NEXT is NEXT.

     I have my first heart biopsy tomorrow, to check for rejection. Blood tests to check medication levels, and all sorts of appointments with docs. The thing is, I am no longer "pre-transplant" Transplantation was one of the goals, and as for the goal, WE MADE IT! Now we take the next step. Join me, let's walk this part together also. I love you guys, I really do.

     Hey kids. By now you have heard the news. If you haven't , you have been under a rock or really should check your voice, and email more often. WE GOT A HEART!! Praise God, Praise God, Praise God! I have been wanting to write sooner, and some of you have been getting a little restless, but in all its glory, Heart Transplant still hurts and requires a ton of recovery. I wanted to share it with you all as soon as I could have something to say...DUH! If I type PRAISE GOD! 500 times it won't come close to letting you in on my emotions. I am going to attempt to put some thoughts into legible order, that makes some sense.

     I want to say first, that, this is as much a celebration for all of you, as it is for me. You have sat and read my words and cried with me. You have emailed, called, sent cards, and, most importantly you have praised God with me when things  were pretty tough. You also have prayed with and for me. Well, So, now we can quit praying, huh? Mission accomplished, pack it up, party's over, last one out, turn off the lights. We all know better than that, right? I have been praying since I awakened Monday morning. For all of you. For me. For people up on this floor, that I don't even know. I have learned to love prayer. I find it so comforting. So liberating, so close to God. Never once have I wondered, "where do we go from here?" It has been planned out since before I ever got sick. This is only the beginning.

    I am going to wrap it down for the evening. I am exhausted, and still very weak. They, rightfully so, push me pretty hard up here. I just wanted so say a couple of more things. I am going to survive this, get healthy, and make a goal to visit all of you. I am going to continue my prayers for each of you, and your families. I have so many great ambitions, right now, and I will accomplish them. But for the next few days and weeks, I am going to get better. Pray more, and, as always, I really love you all. The last thing I want to do, is leave you with this thought... I have a brand new heart. It is mind boggling. I have the heart of a person who no longer walks among us. I have the heart of a husband, father, son, brother, (Female is possible, not likely though.) I want you to get to know, and get to love, this heart also. And, pray for the family of the person who saved my live.