Please forgive Lady Starlight for this semi-religious moment, but I am a Catholic, after all, and Mercy Hospital is a Catholic hospital, as is made evident by this statue which is seen outside the main entrance. It kinda got me to thinking... Thinking things that I don't normally think. Perhaps that is what they had in mind when they placed that statue there.
Yesterday was one of the most trying days that I've experienced in a very long time, but all was better than expected at the end. The rush hour drive into the city was nothing compared to wait of over six hours in the hospital waiting room. We left only briefly to get some lunch. The chairs in there were ghastly. The soap operas that my sister-in-law chose to watch during the wait were even worse!
At about 3:30 PM our wait was over. The surgeon informed us that all went well. They were able to remove all of the tumor and it did not appear to be cancerous. (Insert sigh of relief here.) He also told us that we could actually visit him (the estranged one) in about two hours.
To fill the time during this new wait, I took a minor trek into the city with our oldest son, Ray, who had accompanied me for the day. We got some cash from an ATM, since lunch in the hospital caffeteria and the purchase of a puzzle book to fill the time had depleted nearly all of my cash on hand. After that, we trekked on down to Wood Street, where we had "dinner" at Subway. By the time we returned to the hospital the whole two hour wait was over!
Although it was a bit disconcerting to see "the estrange one" lying there with all sorts of tubes and wires still connected to him, he looked a lot better than I had expected. He was still a bit groggy, but quite lucid. We spoke briefly before I decided that it was time to go home. I figured that he needed to rest without a bunch of worry worts hovering over him.
I know that the road ahead of us may not be easy. Recovery from things such as this never is, and there still is a chance of a set-back. I have also tried to put all thought of the inevitable divorce procedings which will follow his recovery from my mind. For now, I prefer to bask in a feeling of blessed relief. There will be time for all of those other things later. We will all make it through, because perhaps there really is someone watching over us. For that I am thankful...
