Returning Home to Face Reality...Part X

Out of the entire experience I got a wonderful new hat collection. I suppose most friends and family thought I would have my hair shaven off for surgery so in lieu of chocolates and flowers, I got hats. Curiously and to all of our surprise, only an insignificant amount of hair was removed just behind and above my left ear and it was barely noticeable. So, of all the physical imperfections, this was the least offensive.

As our time in the "burbs" winded down, I was almost ready to be discharged. My mother´s rotation was coming to an end and my husband was coming to fill in. We were going to spend one more week together in the city to enjoy a little bit of what it had to offer outside of its excellent medical resources.

We explored an entire new dimension of our marriage as he had to push me around in a wheelchair in certain venues such as museums and other places that required an excessive amount of walking. He also had to assist me with my hearing deficit. I must admit that it was most charming and heart-warming watching how he would constantly advise people to speak to me in my right ear as the left does not work. It was as though we had been married for fifty years and knew just how to manage each other’s deteriorating senses.

A week flew by and it was time to end this chapter. I was nervous to go home. How would the children respond to me? Would I have the strength to care for them? Would I be able to deal with the relentless and unabating heat? Where the heck did ¨they¨ put my panties? How would I navigate through my kitchen, I had no clue as to where anything had been stored?

When I arrived to the house, my youngest child who was 18 months at the time stared at me for a brief moment in disbelief as though he weren’t certain if this ¨new version¨ of mommy encapsulated the one he had always known. Within seconds he must have reasoned that ¨I¨ was a good enough replacement and ran to sit on my lap. My eldest and middle children were both very affectionate and kept stroking my face compassionately and asking why my mouth and nose were so ¨broken¨ and crooked. It was certainly a scene to capture on film, a true ¨Kodak Moment.¨

Being the obsessive control freak that I am, within one short week, I somehow managed to re-classify most every item in my house, rearrange the kitchen and get back on track with the children, their school and activities. I followed up with tons of people to thank them and express gratitude. I had visited with my OB-GYN and local neurosurgeon. I was exhausted, but determined to return to my life as if nothing had happened. It was really great to be home and back ¨in control¨ of my time and free to choose what tasks I was or was not yet capable of undertaking.

I was starting to organize the house, prepare for this new baby and be a mother once again to my children. I was still fragile, but fighting for normalcy and trying to recover my balance and facial movements. All was running rather smoothly until I received an alarming, gut-wrenching phone call that would forever change my life and once again, test my courage, try my nerves and challenge my faith...

To Be Continued…