No Problem.....Uneventful.....No big deal!

The trip to Little Rock was okay…a little unusual in that we shared a room with a 45 year

old man with a young wife and two sons, ages 7 and 17 who had  been in the room for a

week when we got there Thursday afternoon.  He had been undergoing tests all week, and

one doctor came in and told him, just after we got there, that his latest tests revealed some

very negative results that were affecting his liver and his heart.  It did not look good!  His

primary doctor was to make rounds later in the day and give him the details.

  As the word spread, and the possibilities were discussed and his friends and family heard the

news, you can imagine the traffic, visits and phone calls, flowers and balloons..that came.

It made our little problem seem so insignificant as we heard and shared the grief coming

from beyond the curtain.  As we occupied the bed next to the door, we got to know

the wife, brothers, sisters, friends, etc and saw their pain.  When the doctor came in around

11 pm, we heard his words of death to the young man and his family...he had a rare type of

cancer for which there was no known cure, and it was so well advanced that his life expectancy  

was short....very short!  What a message to deliver...what a message to receive!  From what the

young man thought was constipation in November, a gall bladder problem in December,  conflicting

diagnoses in January, and now, death in a little while!  We heard their cries, listened to

their prayers, saw their tears...and we were sure that God was listening also.

I didn't expect it and I did not ask for it, but lo and behold, as I was wheeled out of recovery

and into the room, there was my son, Rick,  Dr. McWhorter, waiting to greet me along with my wife.

I attempted to chastise him for taking away from his busy schedule and important work to look

in on me...as I would have any of my children or friends that I wouldn't want to burden,

but he would have none of it.  We spent the afternoon, the 3 of us, in most pleasant

conversation, even with the tragedy unfolding on the other side of the curtain.  Rick gave me a

blessing, one of the most beautiful and heartfelt blessings I have ever witnessed let alone been

given.  I was grateful for his visit and I will cherish that time spent with him.  Rick, you are one fine

son, among 4 other fine sons and 4 special daughters.  I received calls and cards of hope and

encouragement from all of you and I thank you.  You are all precious to me.

My nurses, aides, and all other hospital personnel were so nice.  We will be fine in a short time.

We will be back over there on Friday, March 2nd, for a follow-up exam, the pathology report and

the planning of any additional treatment I may need such as radiation or chemotherapy.

Thanks for your prayers and good wishes.  I'm sorry if some of you were not aware of my

situation.  I thought I had informed everyone in an email a few weeks back, but I may have

an incomplete list.   It is no big thing anyway.  A friend sent me this.....

Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.
   
    The only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth.
   
    Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing

Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.

Today everything is beautiful and perfect...let's enjoy it.  If it becomes less than perfect,

we will deal with it!   Let’s not let the energy required to worry about the future sap our

strength to fully enjoy and appreciate the present.