Today was annual mammogram day where Honey Badger squeezed my boobs flat to get a look. Pap smear will be next. I was hungry after that so I stopped by Hog Heaven and saw my buddies there. They were out of Philly steak so I settled on a chicken one. It was okay, but not the same! The main reason I go there is to get a hug from Abbey.
Rosie is healing nicely from her abscess, without intervention. I feel sure it was caused by some sort of bite but, who knows. She's an in and out kitty so that's always a danger. Right now she and Oscar are both sound asleep with me in the living room.
While I was eating I ran into an old high school friend whose wife recently died. My husband is gone also, though we weren't married at the time of his death. That was the year of "many deaths" as I refer to it. There were two aunts before his death in June, followed by my Daddy in August and Mama the next January. Mother's and Father's days are coming up which is always bittersweet. If you still have yours, make time count.
I feel like an orphan most days. Or maybe the red headed stepchild! My friends are all busy with their lives while mine is sort of on hold. I'm not quite used to the idle time and reduced income but maybe it's what I need. I have found that one outing a day is about all I can handle and even that wears me out. I noticed while at the hospital that the gift shop is gone which made me sad. It has always been there since it was started by the Pink Ladies volunteer organization. My grandmother helped to establish it back in the day and my mother worked in it too. Gaga was a constant at that hospital working first in admissions, then as an ER clerk and later in the gift shop after she retired at 70. Of course we were there together a lot which shaped my life on many levels. Mom and Daddy were volunteers until they couldn't drive anymore.
Their acts of faithful service far surpass mine but they taught me the importance of giving to others. They didn't have a lot of money at the end, but they kept volunteering as long as they were able. Mama totaled 3 cars because of macular degeneration so she quit driving first. That left Daddy to get her to where she was going and Bubba and I pitched in between job and home. At the end of her bridge club tenure, Mama couldn't even play because of her vision but she liked getting together with her friends for lunch and dessert . Usually one of the ladies would take her and I would pick her up when I got off. On hair day one of us would drop her off and the other pick her up at Angel's Crown Center. That was the highlight of her week!
I still feel their spirits around here. They lived in this house for 60 plus years, moving in when I was a year old. We didn't always agree, like me and my brothers. But we were family and stayed devoted to each other until the end. Thank God I was still working there at the time that they passed and was able to check in on them often.
For some reason I remembered recently about having sinus window surgery performed when Lauren was two years old. I was having chronic sinus infections and endured many punctures of the septum by Dr. David before he did the deed. I must say that it was one of the worst I've had and there have been plenty. The abdominal surgery was by far worse, but I don't remember much of that because I was so sick.
We take good health and access to care for granted, but not so much these days. Hospitals are constantly on diversion because of low staffing. One friend was admitted for a small and ended up in the Nashville area because Baptist East couldn't take her. That is happening more and more.
That's about all I have for today. Y'all be blessed ^j^
No comments:
Post a Comment