Heart Valve Replaced with No Pain

I heard Angelo’s words in my head and carried his triple by-pass experience, from back in the late 80s or early 90s (forgive me on dates) with me the entire time that I was recuperating. Of course I watched him struggling to heal but I had no idea what he was really feeling or suffering. It’s not like he would ever complain about something like that. He saved his complaints for more mundane things. Now I have an idea.

But I didn’t have the pain I think he had. NO PAIN. I’m still sore inside but of course. I had a rather blaze’ attitude about the whole thing until the anesthesiologist explained what he was going to do to me. I got a bit serious then, but I had seen myself healing in my mind’s eye so I couldn’t get too intense about it regardless of the great respect I have for these knowledgeable and skillful people who held my life in their hands, literally.

In between anesthesia (as I understand it and I’m medically blank) he gave me what he called a ‘giggle gas’ (again I’m remembering with a fuzzy mind) this is where the patient tends to rattle on about whatever.

 “Oh, my God! What did I talk about?” I asked with great anticipation. He smiled and said “Pickle Ball. And furthermore everyone in the OR talked about it for two hours because they had no clue just what it is.”

I also remember telling my pacing, anxious son just before the surgery not to worry because I’d had no visitors. Both my mother and brother had visitors i.e. loved ones who passed away, come to them for a period of time before they, too passed away. It must be a family tradition.

Watching a Man Who Loves His Work

It’s great to watch a man who loves his work. It shines out of him without his even being aware of it. At least it seems that way to me. That’s how I felt as I watched Dr. Donald Glower come into my Duke U. hospital room each morning, once as early as 5 a.m. (like he couldn’t bear to wait for another moment to pass) to check his work, as in the sutures, etc. resulting from his replacing a deteriorating heart valve recently. And I have a certificate to prove that a cow gave his life to save mine. Noble animal.

The entire week was a joyful experience for me. It wasn’t only the doctors who impressed me it was the entire 3300 patient care floor, RNs, those who take your blood, wheeled me to x-ray each day, cleaned my room, and the receptionist at the point of the floor, right across from my room.  A camaraderie blanketed the floor.

The floor is laid out in a triangle, which works very well; the receptionist point, as I thought of it, was certainly an oasis of cheer at the entry position. Many patients were in pain, some struggling with other problems added to their heart repairs but responded to any bit of sunshine sent their way. It’s encouraging. There were always bantering, merriment and joking going on in this area and I loved lying in my bed listening to the flow of playfulness going on. I felt it very important and encouragement in the middle of struggling back to normalcy.

I talked and listened to everyone. How did they choose the medical field, how long did they work here, who were they, what plans did they have for that night. I do admit to one noticeable difference. They all looked like they should be in high school!

A Dead Body For The Queen

Sounds like the title for a good mystery novel but in fact a dead body has been found in the garden on the Estate of Sandringham, the Norfolk retreat of Queen Elizabeth in England. The Queen and her entourage are there enjoying the season. At least they were until now.

So Agatha Christie, where are you? We need your expertise on the case! Morse is gone. Inspector Lewis and Detective Sergeant Hathaway won’t leave Oxford. The DCI Barnabys, both past and present along with DC Ben Jones are small village coppers. Mrs. Bradley can’t be found. Hercule Poirot is in Belgium and Zen is in Italy. Father Brown is in church.

Lord Peter Wimsey, Inspector Alleyn, or Inspector Lynley, the 8^th Earl of Asherton and his brilliant partner Barbara Havers could be called. They would fit right in. Wait a minute! Stop the clock, bring out the cell phones and call Rosemary and Thyme……they could solve the crime, catch the killer and then fix any damage done to the garden. Then all Brits can sleep safe in their beds again, even the Queen.

Recipes & Remembrances Cookbook

The Warrenton Woman’s Club Recipes & Remembrances Cookbook started out as a fund raiser for this all-volunteer community service group. We’re still working on raising those funds to benefit students with scholarships in our part of North Carolina. But, as so often happens along the way of doing one thing good; another pops-up. Several retail shops and restaurants in Warrenton agreed to place our cookbooks on their shelves to make buying them convenient for their customers. That means we now have the business district included in our volunteer project.

Families and friends have cheerfully jumped in to help us too, including sending us orders via email. Our WWC Recipes & Remembrances Cookbook is already in Colorado; Bordentown, New Jersey; Florida, and Texas offering little stories for the cook to read while the Sweet Potato Biscuits are baking. H-m-m-m. Can you smell them? Add the Creamy Squash & Red Lentil Stew to warm and comfort tummies this winter in your house.

Jane Austen Readers

Recently I finished reading A Truth Universally Acknowledged; 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen, edited by Susannah Carson. I found it to be more thoughtful to read at leisure rather than trying to read straight through cover to cover, like a novel. Ideas and responses were varied. Since I have read the JA novels multiple times since I found her, I enjoyed seeing the impressions they made on famous writers.

A.S.Byatt discusses the different family structures of the Bertram, Price and Norris families in Mansfield Park. C.S. Lewis states that Mansfield Park and Persuasion are JA’s only two novels where the heroine does not deceive herself.

It is also interesting to read which writers preferred which of her novels. W. Somerset Maugham loved P & P; Emma offended him. Martin Amis remarked of “this tizzy of zealous suspense actually survives repeated readings” referring to P & P. Louis Auchincloss tells us that his favorites changed as he moved through different chapters of his own life. In his youth, Emma and P & P were the best; in middle age they were S & S and Mansfield Park; still later it was Persuasion. David Lodge implies that re-reading Emma is far superior to reading it the first time.

At sixty, Virginia Woolf discussed JA. This book is almost like having an intelligent discussion on a favorite subject. It may be one-sided but it sometimes brings new sight into familiar words. And, if you have only seen the movies made of her novels, do yourself a great favor and read them. You’ll not regret it.

Holiday Season

It’s been too long since I’ve written a word for the Blog or anything else. My mind has been on everything other than putting words together on a string to make sense and stir ideas in others. But that cannot last. My fingers crave the keyboard as much as my mouth craves the taste of good, dark chocolate after a stretch of doing without it.

I have read and returned a few emails with comments, quite unexpected from the senders, I’m sure. REALLY, why be offended when someone says Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. Doesn’t our separation of church and state allow us plenty of room to include all the religions nestled in our country? Have we Christens become such elitists that we cannot be generous and include all others who celebrate their religious holidays on or near the same time as Christens do? Have we become so paranoid that we cannot share a happy comment with someone who worships differently than we do?

All the world religions have the word love in their fundamental teaching. It’s time we follow it and cease negative comments from those who have not studied religions other than the one they follow. It isn't them against us.......it is 'all of us'.

It’s time, now more than ever for all of us to be generous and loving to all peoples. Happy Holidays, whichever one your are celebrating.

Thanks for Books

There will be a lot of thanks given for the love of family, friends, food, and warm, dry shelter and I, too am thankful for those things. But I am also very thankful for books; for words that writers have put together on a string so that I may enjoy, learn and expand my field of compassion and understanding. I’m especially thankful for modern medical technology and medicine that has given me sight from Macular Degeneration Wet, when as recently as fifteen years ago, I would have had darkness.

I’ve just finished reading Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. It’s the true story of Louie Zamperini, his unruly youth that led him to be a record-setting runner before joining up to fight in the Pacific in World War II. The story includes how he was adrift in the Pacific Ocean before being picked up by the Japanese and sent to POW camps. It also follows one particularly brutal war criminal Watanabe, after the war ended. As in Seabiscuit, Hillenbrand does a fine job of stringing her words together.

We, as Americans have much to be thankful for.