Sunday, February 24, 2008

Simple pleasures

The relief of having the much-dreaded colonoscopy behind me (no pun intended) has been an exhilarating sensation. The test was Thursday morning and all day Friday, I felt absolutely euphoric. Not only had I survived the test, it was actually an easy procedure and revealed no problems at all, which had been part of my dread.

My dad died at age 62 of something unidentified which had caused him to lose a great deal of weight; the doctor suspected cancer but because of his failing heart, Dad was too weak to undergo the testing and died without a definitive answer for us, his children. So we don't know whether it was cancer, though we do know that heart disease was a major factor in his early death. Needless to say, we are all alert to the possibility that cancer is part of our medical heritage, as well as heart disease.

It was a relief to be able to tell the Favorite Son that his mother was in good health and that she had no obvious maladies to be dealt with, other than the quirkiness he's already used to. He and the FDIL have their own concerns, with kids, other family members, and their own health, to deal with and don't need more. How nice not to have to add to their load!

One funny thing that added to the relief was that last week, my blood pressure on my home monitor was almost 180 over 74, which was a sit-up-and-take-notice moment. It hasn't usually been that high. At the hospital, just before the colonoscopy, my blood pressure was 20 notches lower, and after the colonoscopy, it was 10 notches lower yet. Was I stressed, or what?

Anyhow, relief is only one of the weekend's simple pleasures-----yesterday morning, the Episcopalian ladies had their annual Rack sale of nice clothes for little money (those Episcopalians dress well!), and I found two nice dresses, total $10, a jacket ($4), a wool sweater (2.50) and a light jacket (2.50), and have updated my wardrobe for under $20. Yay!

In the afternoon, I enjoyed a couple of hours with the North End Koffee Klatch at the hospital cafeteria---cheap food and good coffee.

And in the evening, the Source Conversation on Humanism attracted six of us who hashed over our own level of humanism as a part of our religious faith and found we varied on a scale of 1-5 by almost 10 points (one person pegging self as a 10 on a scale of 1-5 and another at 1.5). It was a great evening.

And today I don't have to preach; I can just enjoy the service this afternoon, which is our annual "This I Believe" day, in which four members of the congregation reveal their own personal credo. I just got back from having one immense blueberry pancake and a sausage patty at a local diner, the cats are asleep on my lap, shoulder, and feet, and there's laundry in the washer.

Ahh, simple pleasures! Not the least of which is posting a new blog entry!

5 comments:

Lizard Eater said...

Isn't it great being on this side of the equation? For anyone who is scared of tests, they just have to understand how good it feels to know that all is pink, healthy and good.

And it's a little opportunity for a taste of relativity, isn't it? For us, all the little annoyances are put into their proper categories of "just little annoyances" when compared to the joy of knowing good health. The sky is bluer, things taste better, etc.

Lilylou said...

Yes, it certainly is. And I know you have had that experience in spades, LE, with your LW. Some things are just inconvenient, not problems. Thanks for your thoughts.

Anonymous said...

So nice to hear your good health is confirmed.
When they checked that part of me, I got to watch on video as they searched my insides. It was painful for me but fascinating too. I concluded that that part of me is the most beautiful -- so pink and smooth and healthy looking. It helped me bear the pain (caused by the air they pumped me full of.)
well, several years until it needs to be done again.
Hurrah for simple pleasures.

Lilylou said...

Thanks, Kim. Your procedure sounds more like a sigmoidoscopy than a colonoscopy. The sig is painful, to some extent, and you do get to watch it all, which is great. But the colonoscopy they knock you out for, which is also good!

Anonymous said...

Yeah, I can't keep straight on which is which. Mine was very painful, but then, I have scars on my intestines -- probably caused by a sloppy surgery. ah, the wonders of modern medicine....