Once again, it has been a long time since our last post, but this time it’s all good news. Andrew is doing fantastically!

At the last update on our News page, I said things were looking positive and they have continued this way. This journey is by no means over for us yet, but there is a tangible sense of ease in the air. It is such a gift to spend time together, simply enjoying each other’s company, and especially to see him looking so much better. We often talk of the future and can’t resist looking forward to the possibility of touring again. Not an epic tour, but something he likes to call a ‘tour-ette’.

There are still a number of challenges to deal with. One of the side effects he has to deal with is severe joint pain. This seems to come and go, and it moves around his body to various points. Unfortunately, the joints that are most effected are in his hands. I can’t pretend we weren’t alarmed the first time this occurred but we did feel a bit reassured when the pain stopped and didn’t revisit for several days. This now seems to be a bit of a cycle, coming and going without warning. Until he is off all medication, we can’t know for sure, but I refuse to think that it is permanent. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

There isn’t a day that passes now where he doesn’t have a guitar in his hands, even on the days when they hurt him. He has tuned the guitars down a bit, so they won’t unduly strain his hands or fingers, and although his playing is a bit stiff at times, his sound is intact. His strength is slowly returning. It’s a day by day process. He still needs to rest and sometimes that’s hard because he often feels like his ol’ self and does a bit too much. He has regained a lot of his energy and most of his hair! I think I can cautiously say that time will truly be the greatest healer now.

We are hoping to have a new DVD for the holiday season, but I’ll leave that for another newsletter, when I am confident of our release date and the material to be included. Now that Andrew’s treatment is not so intensive, I have a bit more time and will turn my attention to getting some of the items you’ve been asking for back into our shop.

We had always thought we could keep Andrew’s progress up to date on our site, with pictures and details of his experiences as he moved through the treatment stages. For a lot of reasons this was not achievable and, with hindsight, it was probably best that we didn’t. There were times when he was so terribly unwell. Seeing him like that would have been more upsetting than necessary. So, now that he seems to truly be on the other side of it all, we’ve included a short slide show. The pictures were taken by Andrew and me. You can get an idea of where we were, and where we are now.

So, just a short message to give you our positive news and to thank you, as I always do, for the phenomenal solace you have so generously offered.

My kindest regards,
Susan Hoover