To Diane, John, Daivd and Tim, thank you all for your support and for responding to my message. Wow, just one day of putting up a posting and all of your messages have really impacted my emotional state. I felt a lot better this morning when I read all of your messages. All of your advice was great, and good luck to all of you in your journey through this.

I finally got to see my boyfriend yesterday, it was the first time after surgery. I was afraid of how he would be, or how I would react when I saw him. I didn't know if he would be awake or if I would just fall a part when I saw him. To my surprise none of the above. He looked great, he was awake and kicking!!! He wasn't allowed to speak, due to the sugery on his tongue, but when I arrived, the first thing he did was hand me a letter that he wrote while he was waiting for me to come. He had stiches starting from his bottom lip, all the way down to his neck. He was swollen on the one side where the large tumor was, but he still looked great.

He has a lot of tubes in him, but even so - he is working hard on getting better. The nurses told us that the next day they would already start to get him out of bed to help with the blood circulation and the swelling. He held my face and touched my hands, and used hand signs to tell me he loves me. I have never seen anyone so strong and brave. As I am sure all that have been in the same shoes, your partners must think the same of you.

As David said about his wife crying away from him, I do the same. I know it helps me to release my frustrations and sadness, but it doesn't help him to get stronger. But seeing him yesterday made all the difference in the world to me, just to see him is the best feeling. He has always been my strength through troubled times, and now I am here to do the same for him.

The next step for him is recovery from the hospital, and for him and everyone around him to take it one day at a time. If anything was difficult to watch, was him gasping for air everytime the oxygyen tube moved, or when he would write on paper to the nurse "I have trouble breathing".

He did ask me questions like "do I look different?", or "do you have a mirror?", in which anyone in his place would be concerned in the changes that take place after surgery. But I think when you love someone, you go through the good and the bad together, no matter what happens - if the love is real, you can get through it together.

For all of you out there that have already been through it, I admire you and I am happy that you have made it through the tough times that you did. You are all an inspiration for me to be the stregth my boyfriend needs, and my good wishes are with all of you.