I am sitting in my mother's kitchen, catching up on email, relishing the quiet moment. I suddenly let the sounds around me invade my concentration...snoring! My mother is in bed snoring, and Grace is next to me on the floor snoring. I don't dare move for fear that I will wake either one. And waking one seems to have a domino effect.
I got my mother some tea and toast before taking Grace out, so she was set for a while. I took Grace for her morning run about an hour ago. She is set for a while. I would like to take a shower, but if I get up from the table, everyone else will be awake. Good time to write some thoughts down.
Since arriving in Saratoga 8 days ago, I have been struck by one thing over and over- We forget how lucky we are! We forget to acknowledge how close to the edge we really are! We forget to be grateful for what we have.
My mother had her hip replaced. The care she received at Saratoga Hospital did very little to assist in her recovery. She was let fall to the floor the first day after surgery. She was given a transfusion, but the blood did not go into her veins, only under her skin. She looks like Popeye with a bruised forearm. The shifts of staff did not communicate one to the next. No one knew what meds she should have been taking, was given or not given. She was violently ill from the pain meds. Not figuring out that it was the pain meds that caused her to be so ill kept her in the hospital for 4 extra days while she suffered terribly. They sent her home convinced it was her blood pressure meds and told her to take 1/2 dose even though her BP was already elevated. At some point, she just stopped fighting them and played possum to get out of there. I am thankful she is home, and recovering faster (except for the cold that I passed along...).
The other day, I took Grace out for a walk, she stopped to smell something. I looked down and saw $11. I smiled, thought I might buy that laser toy for her that I had seen the previous day, and put the money in my pocket. My mother reminded me of how much that money could mean to someone who needed it. It could be dinner for two nights. It could be lunch money for 3 days. And I was thinking of a laser toy for Grace. How lucky I am!
B called to ask if I would give feedback on his resume. I am grateful for a healthy son, a son who has made some very good choices, a son who is thinking about his future, and a son who would like my feedback (sometimes!!). I only have to look at the news or talk to others to know that none of that is a given!!!
So, while the rest of the house snores- resting as best as their nasal passages will let them- I remember to be thankful for those in my life, and remind myself how lucky I am!
Blue skies!
