Dear Kindred Spirits,

Jason Micheli, a minister at the church I attend, was diagnosed with mantle cell lymphoma, a rare and aggressive type of cancer, in February 2015. It almost always affects only men in their old age -- not 37 year olds like Jason Micheli -- a pastor, husband, and father. He spent the year of 2015 fighting this cancer and is now enjoying the fruits of his battle - the cancer is no longer rearing its ugly head. Jason will never be cancer free, but we all pray that it will stay tucked away and never reappear to cause such a life disruption of a gifted young minister. He was asked to write a book about his experience with cancer. His hardback book will be published on Dec. 1, 2016 and is available for pre-order now on Amazon. The following is a book review I wrote for the release of the book, and will be posted on Amazon. Jason is not only a gifted pastor, but a wonderful writer. I thought you may be interested in Jason and his story.

Book Review

Cancer Is Funny: Keeping Faith in Stage-Serious Chemo

written by

Jeannette Zink

November, 2016

Jason Micheli’s new book, Cancer Is Funny: Keeping Faith in Stage-Serious Chemo, is not a have you heard the one about book. It is also not a book written by a minister of religion who decided it best to skip over the messy parts of stage-serious cancer and showcase only a steadfast application of church doctrine and a bow to the sanctity of biblical scripture. Yes, it could be argued that once you cast your lot in the universe of pastoral membership, there are expectations and protocols to be upheld. However, rest assured there are multitudes of offerings and lessons learned from the bread and wine menu served by the grace-filled love of his “non-prick” God.  Each is expertly woven into Jason’s heroic duel with cancer and the pillars of a faith that would sustain him time after time. This account of how one phone call upended a perfectly enjoyable life for the Micheli family and how cancer now the new bride until death do part is funny, while heartwarming and heartbreaking. The rawness in this disease-laden reflection is written with intelligent cheeky humor and profound eloquence – handled with care and given to us as a gift for living our life. The perfect GPS treasure chest for when life takes an unexpected U-turn and the prognosis can only be classified in enigmatic genera terms … stage-serious. Come as you are when you read Jason Micheli’s Cancer Is Funny book, but I promise you will leave a far better person – perhaps the person you were always intended to be.

P.S. If after you have read the last sentence on the final page of Cancer Is Funny and think you have met a new friend in Jason Micheli, you are only a click away from continuing the relationship. Jason’s blog and podcasts at tamedcynic.org echo the man you met within the pages of his funny new book.