Thanksgiving 2008

Thanksgiving this year was quite different from our traditional holiday. Here is why:
On Monday, Nov. 17th around 2 PM I got a call from my sister, Shelia, telling me that my Mother was in the hospital. She had been down with brochitus/a cold for a few days and had gone back to her family doctor for a recheck of her lungs. When she told him that she was having great difficulty breathing and was extremely tired, he sent her immediately to the hospital and order a heart cath to be done on Tuesday. So, I immediately started getting my things ready to head to El Dorado...(covering all my bases in case I had to stay for a while). I arrived at the hospital at 6 PM. Mother was doing better, but still having difficulty breathing. We stayed with her until around 9:30 then Shelia went back for the night. Tuesday she had the heart cath done and they found that her aortic valve had some calcification on it which caused it not to open as it should. We were given the options by the cardiologist of treating it with medicine and adjusting to a very limited lifestyle or having open heart surgery to replace the valve. Mother was not willing to settle for a life of sitting in a chair and having to be waited on hand and foot, so she opted for the surgery. The cardiologist had her meet with the surgeon and her surgery was set for Friday. Then on Thursday Dr. Bhatt said he had been thinking and reviewing all Mother's tests and info and said he was not quite ready to rush into surgery. He wanted to have some other test run and confer with other cardiologist to confirm his findings. So, our emotions went from being "good to go" for the surgery to a "waiting" mode. To make a long story short, Mother had a lung function test and an Echogram on her heart which all confirmed that the surgery was indeed a must. So, they sent her home on Wednesday, Nov. 26th after a 9 day hospital stay with a scheduled surgery for Monday, Dec. 8th. Another week of waiting....
We are very thankful for Mother's cardiologist, Dr. Bhatt, who is a strong believer. He was very open and honest about Mother's health situation and readily admits that they will do all they can to "fix" her heart but ultimately she is in the hands of the Lord. What a comfort to know that your cardiologist has been praying and diligently seeking the Lord's help and wisdom regarding what measures to take in correcting your heart problems. It was truly a blessing to have him treat her.

Now on to Thanksgiving: After staying with Mother in the hospital for a week I had nothing bought with which to make our traditional Thanksgiving menu. So, Norman bought some filet mignon steaks, marinated and grilled them. I had some fresh turnip greens from Daddy's garden patch that I cooked down and we baked a some sweet potatoes. It was not your normal idea of a Thanksgiving dinner and it really felt odd not to get up and cook all day to fix the spread of food we normally have, but it was still good. Since we were not doing the "traditonal" things and because we were not sure of what was going to transpire with Mother, neither of the girls were there either. However, Andrea and Camryn did come over to watch the parade with us but they had made alternate plans for their Thanksgiving Day dinner.

Even though my plans for Thanksgiving were interrupted, I am very grateful for the time I did get to spend with Mother while she was in the hospital. (You see, I took the day shift from about 8:30 am-9:30 pm) and then Shelia came and stayed the night. I think I probably had the best end of the deal because the nurses were forever coming in at night and taking vital signs, weighing Mother or poking pills at her to take, which didn't allow for much sleep. I on the other hand had the pleasure of laughing and talking for hours on end with Mother, making memories I will forever hold dear in my heart. In the years to come when I think back on the Thanksgiving of 2008, although we didn't get to have the traditional time of dining with our family, I will always fondly remember the many hours I did get to spend with my Mother as we made the best of a scary situation.