My goodness... this has been quite a week. Before I go on, I have to note how I have noticed that I have talked about personal stories in my life, but they are rarely current. I feel a little awkward writing in a blog about something going on that is happening "in the now", but I feel like I have to talk about this. My grandpa is in the hospital. He has pneumonia and needs gallbladder surgery. He was told he needed gallbladder surgery almost a month ago now, and he had to take so many tests to make sure he could get it. The surgeon took a long time to schedule it. Then a few days ago he had to go into the hospital because he has pneumonia. My grandpa is not a frail old man. Yes, he is 83 years old, but he is active and has a lot of things to live for and to continue to do. I saw him in the hospital yesterday, and I am happy to report that mentally he is totally "with it", but it is so hard to see him in a hospital bed.
My grandpa and I have a different way of communicating with each other. We show each other our love by giving each other a hard time. For example, my mom and I walked into his hospital room, and other members of our family were there, and he looked at us and said, "Who are you?" Now... I have to admit that for a fraction of a half a second, I thought, "Oh no..." but then I saw something in his eyes that said he was kidding. I was the first one to pipe up with a grin and said, "Don't you pull that with me!" And he laughed. Then as I was leaving, his nurse (who was incredibly kind and funny) was in the room. I said to her, "You make sure you give him a hard time because he likes it." For as long as I can remember, my grandpa has always been hard of hearing, so I had to repeat that to him, just to make sure he heard it.
During my visit with him he had to have an echocardiogram. For just those moments, I was the only one in the room. A little while into it, I got to see the sonogram of his heart which was fascinating. A few moments later, there was sound, and it sounded like a dog lapping up water. I looked at my grandpa's face, and his back was turned away from the technician and he was mimicking the sound by pretending to lap up water like a dog. It literally cracked me up. I didn't want to disturb the technician so I was actually silently busting up, but I could see that he saw me smiling, and I'm sure my face was beet red.
With all of this going on, it makes me sad that it's so close to Christmas. I am trying to stay positive, so here are a some things I am thankful for:
1. My grandpa is in no pain and seems to be relatively comfortable.
2. He's not really into the "Christmas-thing", so I hope he will not feel incredibly sad if he's still in the hospital on Christmas.
3. I am happy to see and hear our family doing such a great job taking care of his and my grandma's needs. I know I live far away, and I want them to know how much I appreciate them all. My mom, uncles and aunts are all showing their love for my grandpa and my grandma. If anything, now is the time to not only show appreciation for my grandparents, but for each other.
4. I am happy that I got to see my grandpa and grandma yesterday. I realized it on my way home that I feel like it's my mission to make people smile and/or laugh when they are feeling sad or scared. I was able to do that for both of them yesterday.
5. I am grateful for the flexibility of the people at my work. I will be able to take off two extra days this week so that I will be available to be spend time with and help my family.
Although I feel scared right now, I feel comfort knowing that I have a good family. Christmas is coming on Sunday, and I know I have been thinking a lot about the Savior (especially lately). Jesus Christ set such a great example for us to live our lives: to be kind, loving, forgiving, understanding, compassionate... the list goes on. My grandpa and my whole family have been in my prayers a lot this week. If you feel so inclined, please remember us in yours.
Happy Tuesday to you and yours...
No comments:
Post a Comment