Monday, February 26, 2007

4 am ... not for the light of heart

Oh my goodness ... it's 4:30 p.m. and I'm absolutely exhausted! But, it's been a good day. We got to the hospital in Council Bluffs about 4:45 this morning and got signed in for Max's ankle surgery. By 7:00 am, I was in the waiting room and poor Max was getting an epidural (which for information's sake, didn't work). After waiting 2 1/2 hours, I began to wonder how much longer things would take. Fortunately, the waiting room attendant stopped to talk with me. Max was doing fine, but things were taking much longer than they had planned. After another hour or so, they finally took me back to speak with the surgeon. He had worked on that ankle for over 3 hours - about twice as long as he usually does. Poor Max - his ankle was a complete mess. He had to do a bone graft and saw off quite a few bone spurs. But, it's done and Max will begin the road to recovery. Praise the Lord!

I'm not one to beg for sympathy, so know that isn't why I'm about to type this next part. I haven't been to this hospital in 20 years. 20 years ago in March, Mom came here to die. It became my second home for nearly 2 weeks. Those two weeks were some of the most profound that I've ever spent. I grew up a lot and I learned a lot from her about living and dying. It was an awesome time in my life, and a very difficult time. As we drove up to the hospital, memories came flooding back and I got a little bit weepy. Honestly, it could well have been the fact that I was operating on very little sleep, or the fact that I was a bit nervous for Max. But, at the same time, the memories were crowding past the moment to reinsert themselves into my heart.

20 years ago seems like such a long time, but sometimes it just feels like it's only been a couple of years since she has been gone. I certainly hope she's having as much fun as she was planning to have!

I must admit that I'm glad to be here with someone that is going to go home healthier than when he left. Oh, there's going to be an incredible amount of time that this thing has to heal. But, when it does, it's going to be wonderful!

Now, I'm going to lean back in the rocking chair and see if I can grab a few moments of sleep. Anything to make the yawning cease!

1 comment:

Jacqniel said...

I'm so glad that the surgery is over and it was a success. You are both in my prayers. How long will Max be in the hospital? I assume he will have to have physical therapy? The operation sounds grueling. Take care - Love, Jacque