Dave Wright Writes

  An Old Man Canoes the Quetico by Dave Wright Canoeing in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, or in this case, its Canadian counterpart, Quetico Provincial Park, has been one of my favorite activities of my life. I recently celebrated my seventy-second birthday, and I wondered, Can I still do this? Am I physically capable of enjoying the trip? Can I compensate for my age with extra preparation? I was eager to find out. I took my first canoe trip as an eighth grader out of Camp Widgiwagon through the YMCA. I was a shrimpy eighty-pounder and had a hard time keeping up. I learned that it’s okay to apologize, but persistent self-deprecation soon becomes aggravating. The trip was marked by rain, smelly canvass tents, food shortage, and a cranky guide and counselor. The last night of the trip, the four of us boys pitched our tent in a grassy swale—no roots or rocks to bite our backs for a change. About midnight it started to pour. We piled our sleeping bags next to one wa...

  The Patient by Dave Wright About a year ago, on the sixth of November, The Patient woke to news that we all fear: The “C” word, Cancer. The Patient pleaded for answers to all the common questions. “How bad is it? Has it spread? Is it curable?” “It’s bad,” came the reply, “but you’re healthy, and you have a strong immune system.” That assurance gave her hope. But in the past year, conventional therapy has not been working. The cancer has been eating away at nearly every part of her body. What used to be healthy and vibrant has become decayed and crippled. At a recent checkup, The Patient heard more bad news. “Your immune system is not functioning properly. Normally there are checks and balances to keep your body working. They are in place to prevent you from dying, but they’ve been compromised.” “What happened?” “The protective laws and systems in your body are being ignored. In addition to your cancer, a virus has infected you and taken control of every cell. You...