Arare litus

 

It would be ploughing the seashore to wait for a certain response to the many questions that are burning in my mind, or to hope that we will have definite answers to all of them soon.  However, to be ready for next weekend seems more positive to prepare for my birthday next weekend.  I’m thrilled to be able to say that my release date is now June 25, 2021!  So that I will be at home for June 26, 2021! Party on, people! (The physiotherapist said that I look way younger than my age says!  Woohoo!)

My doctor gave me that glad news along with a few other happy pieces today.  The other good bits include that I do not have the dreaded C. diff. Bacterial infection, which is a plague on hospitals and I can return from isolation tomorrow 😆😃.  I admit that I was happy to have a break from going down to physio today, but all is meant was  having the training in my room instead… they continued anyway.  So no escaping for me.  It’s ok, I’m looking forward to being able to walk by myself like a big girl!  I’ve got some exercises to try in my bed to help strengthen my muscles, but they don’t feel like I’m accomplishing much.  The physiotherapists assure me that my tiny movements will strengthen my muscles and will help my legs to become stronger and I’ll get back to normal quickly.

In this COVID era, it’s hard to remember that there are other illnesses that prevail, some of which are highly unpleasant.it’s become somewhat myopic for us to spend our efforts only on Covid.  But I’ve noticed that there are far fewer people suffering from colds and the flu this winter than in years past.  Anyone else?  Anyone else finding that there are fewer sufferers from from some ailments caused by some allergies than previously?  I think that large portions of them are probably because of the masks and and protective gear that we have been using last year, too.  Some roll on benefits to wearing PPE and distancing that we hadn’t considered at the outset, perhaps?

Some years ago, when I had first been put on precautions because of my illness, I worried that I’d suffer remarkably.  They removed my spleen and I was cautioned that for the rest of my life, I’d need to be supremely careful with my health and with safety.  Things like I’d have to carry antibiotics whenever I travelled, that I’d need to be cautious of public bathrooms, of people coughing or sneezing, and so on.  For the first few months, I was uncertain of whether I should not even travel, and then I realized that it would mean daily shifts in activities which would become normal.  My life took on a different cast, yes, but I went on travelling.  I went to Cuba, to Montenegro, to a farm in Bosnia… to places that I wouldn’t have ever considered before!  I learned how to say, “I’m allergic to beef,” in several languages 😂 and how to say, “I need emergency medical help,” in all of them, and I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of my travel.  It will be much the same, I imagine, with Covid and its effects.  We will need booster vaccines, as we do for things like yellow fever or tetanus.  And we’ll have an unpleasant half hour after the shot in the doctor’s office while we wait, then life will, thankfully, resume while we continue travelling!  

I don’t, and I never will, understand, those who express fear of medical treatment.  Part of it may be a result of the fact that I’ve lived through so many treatments myself, and dealt with so many after effects of treatments for years.  Maybe I’ve grown an extra layer of protection from questions that might otherwise keep me from exploring.  Partly, it’s my natural curiosity that keeps me searching for new things… the inquisitiveness of wanting to know more that leads me to try new foods and new tastes, and partly the urge to better connect with humanity.  Whatever it is, it helps me overcome the hesitation that says, “is this safe?” Because there are hundreds of people doing the same things so clearly it is safer than doing nothing!  So… get up and let’s go out and try new things.  Some may cause unpleasant side effects, but the majority will not.  Some may make you sick, but then you’ll know the important lesson of what to avoid, and in all cases, you will understand that essential human drive of, “to seek out and explore strange new worlds and and to boldly go where no one has gone before!”   Allons-y!