The Light Through the Pouring Rain

 

 

The Light Through the Pouring Rain

by James Ruvalcaba

Love & Loss

An emotional page turner that gives a first hand look into the lives of a young couple madly in love and eager to start their lives together, only to have it all halted by a cancer diagnosis. With no clear road map on how to navigate their new normal, James and Anabel proceed into uncharted territory, hand-in-hand, with the love of their families and their faith in God to guide them.

NOTE: The book is on sale for only $0.99.

Excerpt:

It was April, and a couple months had passed by. At this point, everybody knew. Our friends and family knew and had been brainstorming on our game plan. Her first chemo session was April 2. Unfortunately, her family was not equipped to handle taking care of her. They had no experience with cancer and the pain that was upcoming. Unfortunately, my family and I had experience. Not that we wished we had, but it was an asset for this upcoming challenge. Cancer runs in our family. We’d lost our fair share of members, and the best place Anabel could recover was at our home. I had to talk to my family about the situation, and they agreed. My mom was the best man for the job. I couldn’t be more thankful for her. Mom was ready for the task at hand in a moment’s notice, without hesitation; she was the only one I could truly turn to in these times.

Anabel had gotten situated in our home. She stayed in my room with my brother and me. Which was a challenge in itself, due to him enjoying his senior year of high school, coming in and out of the house, partying it up, and having his friends over. We managed to make the best of it. At times it could be unbearable and make Anabel and me crazy, but the care and love that my brother had for her made it easier for us. He would be a pain in the ass, but had a soft spot for Anabel and would regulate things when Anabel needed some time. This was a challenge for Anabel and me as well. This cancer had rushed a huge step in our relationship: we had finally moved in together. It wasn’t the circumstances that we had imagined or planned for, but we had to make it work.

We had spoken on what location we would like to live in and how Anabel didn’t care much for where and how much, but only if she could decorate for each holiday. That was her only stipulation. “James, I don’t care what you say, I’m gonna go all out every holiday, and you can’t say a damn thing to me.” It was adorable. It would put a smile to my face, because she made a point to say that as if it would be a deal breaker.

We had established our routine. She would wake up early, around eight a.m., have coffee with my grandma and her dog in the backyard, and reminisce about my grandma’s glory days as a caretaker. Then I would wake up around ten a.m. to “Good morning, Meez!” Anabel called me Meez because my little brother would call me Jamies, and if you say the second syllable of Jamies, it sounds like “Meez.” So she ran with it. We would eat breakfast together and follow that up with some episodes of The Office. Then I would go to the gym for a couple of hours then return to her to relax, watch TV or movies with her on her phone, then eat dinner. My Mom would make, and repeat. A very simple routine, but effective due to the fatigue she would be experiencing from chemotherapy.

It may seem like a very bland routine for a normal person, but it was what she wanted. April 2 was fast approaching. After a couple of weeks, it was finally here.

About the Author

Hello, I'm James Ruvalcaba. I am the author of “The Light Through the Pouring Rain.”

I am a family man and hold them near and dear to me. I am a down-to-earth person that loves creating conversations.I believe the more we communicate the more we see the beauty of God's previous workings. In pursuit of my God-given mission, I began writing because of a promise I made to my Fiance on her last day. I wanted to honor my fiance's legacy and to be a testimony of God's goodness. I continue to tell stories and hope to achieve telling stories that uplift others, give some perspective on life, and to walk away with a sense of inspiration. If they can take lessons and perspectives given in my words to their own lives then I feel I accomplished what I set out to do.

As a personal favor, I asked the author this question:

I am a cancer warrior still fighting the fight (2nd recurrence Uterine CA). Please write something about the importance of Hope and Humor while dealing with serious illness.

No matter what you go through with your illness, no matter the bad news you hear or the pain you experience never let it take away your smile or sense of humor. Our sense of humor is everything in this life. It’s the tool we use to handle any situation we deal with. A good sense of humor will keep every situation light and positive. The more laughter there is the more smiles there will be. On your darkest day and it’s hard to laugh use your hope as the perspective that fuels your fire to continue to put one foot in front of the other and to continue to battle. The best way I can put this is it’s better to have a slim chance rather than no hope at all. We battle every day just for an opportunity and hope provides that opportunity for you to keep pushing. You will overcome cancer like you did the first time and will be better on the other side of this battle I promise you.

Thank you, James, for your thoughtful response!

Contact:

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Social media: @JamesMRuvalcaba

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