This month I am Celebrating 18 years ”cancer-free,” since I was diagnosed in Fall 2000 with kidney cancer.
In the Jewish tradition, 18 is an auspicious number. Each letter in the hebrew alphabet has a corresponding number, and the letters for 18 are chet, and yud which are pronounced ”Hi” (not like the chai we drink). The hebrew word ”Hi” is translated into the english as ”Life”.
So, you can see how grateful I am to still be here and celebrating this time with all of my friends, and family in our Creswell and expanded community. I try to start each day with thoughts of gratitude, and I am especially grateful for the love of my life, my wife Donna, and look forward to our growing old together.
– Yaakov Levine, Chronicle Columnist, Nutritionally Speaking
