Well, it has been said the way to make God laugh is to tell him your plans. We were headed for Wyoming and really looking forward to a great summer at Devils Tower Golf Club, and were only about 2 hours away from there when we received a phone call telling us the “mysterious growth” on my lip was a carcinoma. After much consideration and several phone calls, we made the decision to forego Wyoming , for at least this season, and return to Fargo and the VA to get this medical issue behind us.
Having spent 4 of the last summers in northern Minnesota, the closest VA medical facility for me was in Fargo, North Dakota, which is about an hour west of Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. That is the primary reason Fargo became my clinic of record, but I have to say the care I have gotten there, combined with the medical care Mary has gotten in Detroit Lakes, made returning there a very comfortable and confident decision. Had we continued on to Wyoming, I would have had to go to Rapid City or Sturgis, both places a long drive. Plus the VA would need to authorize a “Traveling Vet Consult” which would add weeks to the next treatment. I wanted to get it done ASAP.
We also called Dawn at Woodland Trails (otherwise known as “Home”) to see if they had room for us. They did and that is where we will be for the balance of the summer, and maybe beyond.
We got back to the Fargo area and since all the RV parks in Fargo hadn’t opened yet, we instead went on to Detroit Lakes and settled in at Country Campground for about 10 days. Woodland Trails wasn’t open yet due to night-time temperatures effecting water and sewer but DL is a nice little town and we enjoyed the opportunity to relax after the long trip and the other added stresses.
The VA got me right in and a follow-up surgery was scheduled for May 17th. After the consultation with Dr. Terrell I was feeling better about everything but we still had to go through it to be completely sure. Today, May 20th, I received word that the entire malignancy is gone and there is no sign of it system-wide. Hooray!
So here we are, our plans changed dramatically. We may try to go to Wyoming next year, someplace new or maybe back here to WT. We are happy with things though. We get to see our friends at Woodland Trails, do some more fishing, and we are comfortable with the area.
Regarding our coming winter season, we don’t know for sure where we will go but our present focus is on south Texas. More on that later. For now, we are closing in on 6 years on the road, still love it, but we know we will have to “settle down” somewhere, sometime in the future. Our entire adventure has been filled with people, places and things that seem to come along at just the right time for us. I think the opportunity will be obvious when the time is right.