{"id":2299,"date":"2024-02-13T15:26:28","date_gmt":"2024-02-13T20:26:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/?p=2299"},"modified":"2024-02-13T15:26:28","modified_gmt":"2024-02-13T20:26:28","slug":"how-blessed-we-are","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/2024\/02\/13\/how-blessed-we-are\/","title":{"rendered":"how blessed we are&#8230;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">the majority of us human beings wake up every day without a second thought of how amazing life is and how blessed we are! i know because i used to be one of them! that is, up until i was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer! and it wasn&#8217;t as if this awareness happened overnight but it did unfold over time! what&#8217;s so weird to me is if i would have ever come to this epiphany if i hadn&#8217;t been diagnosed? damn! when i started to recognize and acknowledge the many blessings received daily, my perception evolved! my life, even with cancer&#8217;s deadly presence, has changed into something that exudes peace, beauty and contentment! hey&#8230; who would&#8217;ve thought? i started by recognizing ordinary everyday occurrences to be grateful for! waking up each morning and opening your eyes and being able to see is an overlooked blessing! think of all those who wake up and open their eyes to blackness! or the people who wake up and are mute or are paralyzed?! we take our five senses for granted all the time! there are those of us who are less fortunate and have to deal with disabilities daily! they are the true warriors on this earth! we are constantly surrounded with beauty and wonders each and every day and only very few truly notice! personally&#8230; i now wonder that though i am dealing with this deadly disease, would i have come to this same end without it? hmm! i think not! i would probably still be working a dead end night job, busting my ass and just barely getting by without ever noticing or being thankful for the beauty that surrounds us all! so please&#8230; try to be aware of how blessed we are! God&#8217;s blessings are enumerable!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">peace and blessings&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"633\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1A570252-58F9-4332-B686-73451B8849E6.jpeg?resize=633%2C1024&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1908\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1A570252-58F9-4332-B686-73451B8849E6.jpeg?resize=633%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 633w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1A570252-58F9-4332-B686-73451B8849E6.jpeg?resize=185%2C300&amp;ssl=1 185w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1A570252-58F9-4332-B686-73451B8849E6.jpeg?resize=768%2C1243&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/1A570252-58F9-4332-B686-73451B8849E6.jpeg?w=828&amp;ssl=1 828w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 633px) 100vw, 633px\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>the majority of us human beings wake up every day without a second thought of how amazing life is and how blessed we are! i know because i used to be one of them! that is, up until i was [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-living-life-with-cancer"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8zBYf-B5","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2572,"url":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/29\/eleven-years\/","url_meta":{"origin":2299,"position":0},"title":"ELEVEN YEARS!","author":"Michael","date":"June 29, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Eleven years ago today, I received what I believed at the time was a death sentence: Stage IV lung cancer. It was not. Ironically, I walked out of that doctor\u2019s office with my head held high. But as I turned the corner and began the quarter-mile walk home\u2026 the tears\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Living life with cancer!&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Living life with cancer!","link":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/category\/living-life-with-cancer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2560,"url":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/29\/havent-posted-lately\/","url_meta":{"origin":2299,"position":1},"title":"HAVEN\u2019T POSTED LATELY!","author":"Michael","date":"May 29, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"I have not been posting lately for a very simple reason. My concentration has been focused on my second book, CANCER\u2019S GIFT:THE GIFT OF AWARENESSFurther Conversations of a Walking Dead Man I know the title is a mouthful, but once you read the introduction, you will understand exactly what this\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Living life with cancer!&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Living life with cancer!","link":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/category\/living-life-with-cancer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/IMG_6476-scaled.jpeg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2578,"url":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/16\/growing-faith\/","url_meta":{"origin":2299,"position":2},"title":"growing faith","author":"Michael","date":"July 16, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"my faith is so stronglook in the mirror to seenow ever growing then what shall i do?live without having belief?i do not think so! cancer taught me howi see beauty everywheremy eyes are opened so i ride my bikeand lift my head to the skynow i see farther now i\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Living life with cancer!&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Living life with cancer!","link":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/category\/living-life-with-cancer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/IMG_8809.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/IMG_8809.jpeg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/IMG_8809.jpeg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/IMG_8809.jpeg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/IMG_8809.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":198,"url":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/2017\/07\/05\/15-recapitulation\/","url_meta":{"origin":2299,"position":3},"title":"Recapitulation!","author":"Michael","date":"July 5, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Since I'm now just beginning my 3rd year of treatment something occurred to me. \u00a0Mind you, I'm still here through the grace of God but it goes much deeper than that. The simple fact is that I've made it this far in my life\u00a0only through the grace of God! There\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Living life with cancer!&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Living life with cancer!","link":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/category\/living-life-with-cancer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2584,"url":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/27\/choosing-violence\/","url_meta":{"origin":2299,"position":4},"title":"choosing violence","author":"Michael","date":"July 27, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"woke up this morningchoosing violence.no hesitation involved,only relentless intent. i am not like this usually,but due to circumstancesnot quite within my grasp,my choices are limited. the act i have chosenmay seem insignificant to some,but means the differencebetween breathing\u2026 and not breathing. i am extending my riding time,each and every day\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Living life with cancer!&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Living life with cancer!","link":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/category\/living-life-with-cancer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2589,"url":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/03\/subject-to-change\/","url_meta":{"origin":2299,"position":5},"title":"subject to change","author":"Michael","date":"September 3, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"i have something to sayto some may seem strangethere are things in my lifethat are subject to change now do not get me wrongi know what i claimcircumstances ariseno one is to blame with my life at riskand time at its essencei will never denybelief of God\u2019s presence so i\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Living life with cancer!&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Living life with cancer!","link":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/category\/living-life-with-cancer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_8958-scaled.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_8958-scaled.jpeg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_8958-scaled.jpeg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_8958-scaled.jpeg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_8958-scaled.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/walkingdeadman.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_8958-scaled.jpeg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2299"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2299\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2300,"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2299\/revisions\/2300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/walkingdeadman.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}