‘You might as well go out and get a job’ he said in resignation. Really, he didn’t want her to. The present arrangement is just fine thank you, but she had started this conversation and he wanted to end it and move on to another topic. Conversations between mates are like battles between armies sometimes. It is best to pick the spot on the field that gives advantage in battle, and locked in an auto hurtling down the road at 72mph was hardly the place for me. ‘I thought you didn’t want me to work’ she replied. ‘I don’t’ came the immediate reply. ‘Well I think I have to wait to see how things turn out.’ ‘If it’s what you want to do you should do it, I will be fine, we can get help if we need it down the road as far as my care is concerned’, he said with his foot now firmly lodged in his mouth. Like a worn general at the end of the day, he knew he was lost. With that a long silent pause ensued, as it often does between us, her buried in her thoughts and me in mine. From there it is whatever floats to the top, avoiding the controversial and immediate, and so it goes.
It is Tuesday in the early AM, 9/21/10. Jennifer’s b day was yesterday and I sorely missed her. Jocelyn and Vanessa spent the morning and early afternoon with me as we waited for 15 minutes of testing and 10 minutes of consultation. The ordeal started at 8:15AM with check in, two drinks and 11AM for a CT scan, a wonderful lunch at Ted’s Montana Grill where we imbibed in buffalo and drank through environmentally correct paper straws. Van and I spent the weekend in Indy with the Grand dog and cat. Saturday we walked a lot through the shops of the village and I held up well. Yesterday Inger was well satisfied with my leg.
We arrived at Dr. H at 12:45P for check in and had our consultation around 2:05P. Uncharacteristic for this group but one could see they had some difficult cases going on with by my count 4 new diagnosis deliveries during my time there. I felt so for the fellow probably younger than me with two caregivers. He came into the lobby from the exam room with his feet sliding in a drag. They stopped at the nurse station. His caregivers left him at a chair in the lobby and went out to check out to set the next appointment. He got some options, I heard her say. I took her to be his sister, and him his brother in law. Left alone across from where I set he had the look of the deer we encountered early this morning in our headlights. My heart went out to him then my name was called. When I came back the trio was gone. Today during our visit the Doctor was laying out some bad news for a few people. An office filled with pain yet the professionals soldier on working within the process.
The prognosis is;
Two months since treatment ended and condition is ‘stable’. Lymph nodes are significantly smaller than in January and tumor has not changed, although he noted some thickening in the wall (indicating growth according to my research). The results go the surgeons and we will see if they want to consult on a surgical option at this time. We will know this week.
No comments:
Post a Comment